


Shattered

by Rshinystars



Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms, The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Demise is Fi's and Ghirahim's father, Domestic Violence, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Fi and Ghirahim are siblings, Heed the warning in the tags, Hurt/Comfort, I'm Sorry, Implied/Referenced Domestic Violence, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Implied/Referenced Suicide, M/M, Maybe - Freeform, Not Beta Read, Not Canon Compliant, Past Abuse, Past Character Death, Past Child Abuse, Past Torture, Soul Bond, Soul bonds share memories, Suicidal Thoughts, This can be a bit depressing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-15
Updated: 2018-09-15
Packaged: 2019-07-12 12:07:08
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 28,001
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15994889
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rshinystars/pseuds/Rshinystars
Summary: Link turns around, the sword flashing occasionally, sounding occasionally, and Zelda stares at him with a mix of disbelief and sympathy.Was victory always meant to be so bitter sweet?---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Soul bonds were rare.It was either a blessing or a curse.Even rarer did they show the memories of the other with so much detail you could taste the blood they tasted all those years ago.Link hated waking up to the taste of iron and the feeling as if he had just been beaten black and blue.





	Shattered

**Author's Note:**

> Heed the warnings in the tags !Some of the memories are pretty graphic, and references some pretty heavy stuff. Please keep that in mind if you read it!

Link stares in disbelief.

The demon—-no, man—-who has helped him throughout his journey despite what his role was—-broken. Shattered.

Demise smirks as a look of absolute horror and rage overwhelms Link as he crumbles to his knees with a roar. 

“ _ If I am going down, so will you!” _

And Ghirahim’s cry of pure agony rips through Link like a knife. 

“ _ No, no, no _ !” is all the hero can muster as the man he loves is left there in two pieces.

Two pieces of the demon blade Demise tried to kill Link with after possessing Ghirahim to do his bidding once more. After Ghirahim, against all odds, had managed to defy the fate given to him by the goddess, Hylia, and travel down the path meant for him.

Link hears Ghirahim’s sister, Fi, his trusted partner, cry out desperate for Demise to stop as he makes one last effort to utterly destroy Ghirahim. It is the first time he has ever heard Fi show such an emotion. 

Such  _ fear _ .

It was dumb to expect that everything would go smoothly. It was dumb to believe that he would be able to kill Demise and save Ghirahim from this madness. Link kicks himself in anger at his own stupidity. The hero breaks into a dead run, sword in hand, rage blinding him as his sword drives through the Demon King before he could do anymore damage to him.

Yet, Demise laughs. A laugh that continues to send chills down Link’s spine even as it chokes on the black blood that ran through its veins. Demise was no man. Demise was a monster who desired to kill everything, family included. 

“ _ This is not the end, boy _ .”

The hero barely hears those words as Demise collapses, fading. He stares straight ahead, watching the darkness go. Silence fills his ears as he realizes where he is. Impa stands before him, but all he can hear was the broken ring behind him.

Sounding so much like Fi when she needs his attention. 

Link turns around, the sword flashing occasionally, sounding occasionally, and Zelda stares at him with a mix of disbelief and sympathy. 

_ Was victory always meant to be so bitter sweet? _

Link collapses to his knees taking the halves of what is left of the Demon Sword—of Ghirahim. Fi looking over his shoulder.

A broken voice, “Our task is complete, Master.”

And it hurts more to hear Fi speak with so much raw emotion that developed over the journey. Learning who she was, who Ghirahim was, who Demise was, it all made this win seem…

Bittersweet?

There really is no happiness in it for him, and Link has never felt so selfish as he just lets himself cry cradling the broken blade.

Zelda wraps her arms around her childhood friend, muttering empty apologies because all she saw was what Demise, what the demons made him. Never who he was and wanted to be.

Never who he was before being turned into a demon. 

Not like what Link saw. 

She only saw a  _ monster _ try to kill her, try to ruin the world. 

Everything seems so empty to Link.

_ Is there any way to save him _ ?

He hasn’t realized he said it out loud as Fi proposes an idea. An idea that is far fetched, but possibly the only way to keep him alive. Perhaps it is because Fi always announces percentages after every analysis she makes, but this seems more hopeless without a number pinned to it. In Link’s mind, it is because this is actually Fi talking, not what the Goddess chose her to be. 

“Go to Faron,” Fi chokes out again for Link to respond to. “There’s a chance for him there.”

What are the odds that the dragon deity, with all her pride, after being attacked by a possessed Ghirahim, will even consider helping him? It is probably so low that Fi won’t add a number to that chance. 

Even she is desperate and she is supposed to be the logical one in this journey. Yet, this is her brother; her brother, who, in an attempt to right the wrongs forced upon him by a terrible fate, nearly died—is dying. It isn’t fair really. Link’s head throbs, from the emotion, the thoughts, the possibilities—

He forces himself to stand, carrying the halves, looking to Zelda and Impa for approval. Impa gives it more readily than Zelda does. Link isn’t even sure if Zelda actually acknowledges his request or simply turns to Groose who stands there shocked to silence at Link’s reaction to Ghirahim’s demise.

Groose sees Zelda staring at him and comments quietly so only she can hear, but Link picks it up, all too clearly, “Wasn’t he the bad guy? Aren’t we supposed to be celebrating now that he’s—”

“ _ Shut up _ ,” Link hisses through tears.  _ You don’t understand what he’s been through _ . But why tell them that when they won’t? When there’s not enough time to explain before he dies in his hands. 

Groose straightens. Stares straight ahead, silenced by Link’s vicious response. Zelda gives Link a hard look, ready to argue on the matter.

“It tried to kill me,” Zelda says equalling his tone.

“ _ He _ tried to  _ save _ you, too,” Link fights back, desperate to just be given a quick passage there. “You don’t  _ know _ what he’s been through.” He doesn’t want to fight with his childhood friend. Not over this. Not when the man he loves is dying before his eyes.

Impa saves him, her voice levelled, “You can explain later, Link. Fi, do you think it wise? To save him? Will he not try to revive the Demon King once more?”

“He won’t,” Fi announces with an emptiness that hurt the hero’s heart. “My brother is back.”

The word brother shocks everyone except Link. Zelda gaspes audibly and Groose steps away from Link. It is enough to give Link energy to move closer to Impa.

“Won’t you help me—”

“Come.”

And so he follows. The air heavy; Zelda and Groose remain behind as Impa leads him to an easy way to get to Faron. Link could have done that, he realizes. If his mind wasn’t so caught up on the fact that the sound the broken blade made was becoming more and more infrequent as time went on, he probably would have been able to think straight. 

But all he can think about was how that meant Ghirahim was closer and closer to not coming back ever again.

Link doesn’t know how he will convince Faron to help Ghirahim. How much does she know of his and Fi’s story? How much of this is just a cruel joke played on the two of them by the gods simply because they are bored? 

How benevolent is Hylia really? To allow this to happen to someone so innocent, what a cruel action. 

Faron’s reaction to seeing the Demon Blade is as good as he could hope for. Rage. Insulted. Frustrated.

“He’s not—”

“You dare to bring this demon in my presence? The very thing that tried to kill me?” Faron’s voice booms and Link’s mind spins. 

Fi, gratefully, takes over, “He’s not who he used to be. The curse has been lifted, Demise has been sealed. Please, all I desire before ending my own quest is to see him alive, well, by the man he loves’ side.” 

“Love you say?” Faron queries. “You expect me to believe he is capable of love?”

“Yes.”

And Faron must have been taken off guard by the sudden change in Fi as she is rendered silent. For a long time, Link thinks that maybe she will just force them to leave without trying to hear them out. 

Faron continues to shock him.

“What has happened to him?”

“Demise broke him,” Link finally speaks. “Ghirahim had been going against his orders for a long time before Demise finally retook control over him. He never wanted to hurt anyone, but Demise won over him.” His voice catches as he begins to recall everything, “As a last ditch effort to prevent Ghirahim from returning to us, from accomplishing everything he wanted, he did… this”

There is more silence.

A soft ring from the sword that Link hasn’t heard in too long.

“Please—”

“I can help him,” Faron announces slowly. “But the blade being broken proves there are many things wrong beyond that. More than I can fix.” Link swallows and Fi nods solemnly. “But it seems you both already knew that. The demon blade is broken. Shattered. His soul is that blade. His soul has better fractured, possibly beyond repair at this point.”

“No…” Link gasped.

Faron gives Link a hard stare, and another soft, barely audible ring came into the room, “His time is near over. Place him into the lake, Link. Chosen hero by the goddess, I am trusting that you know what you are doing when you try to save this demon.”

Link only does what he’s told deeming it better to not speak to her. It will waste more time. It will lower the chances of him surviving. 

“I cannot guarantee that it will not kill him,” Faron adds as an afterthought. Link’s eyes widen as the broken blade slips from his hands into the water. “This is pure water. I’m uncertain of the effects it will have on a demon.”

Fi speaks to calm Link, “He is more human than demon now.”

There was a barely audible sigh of disappointment, “That’s fortunate.”

They remain there in silence. The blade floating in the water, each piece glowing. A soft purplish hue telling signs of something happening. Whether it is good or bad, Link doesn’t know. He doesn’t know if he wants to know at that point. 

Finally, Faron speaks, “You should rest. It may be awhile before anything significant happens. The damage done is severe. It is not an easy process to heal, let alone fully repair one’s soul. It may not be possible now.”

“Will you not hurt him?”

“I will not. You have my word hero. Whether you are damning us now or simply saving a life, I swear to you that I will not harm the creature you have brought before me lest he do me harm,” Faron stares at the blade halves. “Though, I feel that even if it does work, there would be very little he could do.”

Link chooses not to respond; he always found it exhausting to talk to her. Instead, he leaves, finding a place nearby to rest. His journey isn’t over until he knows the fate of Ghirahim. 

“I thank you, Link,” Link blinks at the sound of Fi’s voice. It sounds so human now. It sounds so friendly. 

“For what?”

“For not leaving my brother,” Fi admits. “For caring for him the way you do. I will… I have never forgiven myself for the fate he took on. I failed him as a sister.”

“I never got the whole story.”

Fi shakes her head, “Rest. Maybe you will learn it.”

The hero does not understand what that means. He does not know how he will learn it through resting, but he does so finding his body suddenly aching from all the nonstop fighting. His mind constantly wandering to the fight with Ghirahim. How terribly bittersweet it was.

“ _ If I ever turn on you Link, kill me. Don’t let him win. _ ”

Link couldn’t do it. He couldn’t kill him because he loves him too much. How much of a fool can he be to fall in love with him like that? It wasn’t hard. The more Ghirahim helped him, the more they spoke normally, the easier it became to trust him. The time he found Ghirahim and Fi talking when he had fallen asleep that one time, conversing a dangerous plan to destroy Demise once and for all. 

At the cost of himself.

Well, he supposes Ghirahim’s plan almost went through. 

It is thoughts of Ghirahim, telling him he is safe, telling him that the battle was won, that led to Link finally drifting off to sleep.

——————————————————————-

_ “You each have a role to fulfill,” a blonde girl began. Her presence otherworldy. A light glow emanates from her and any chance of pinpointing an age eludes them. _

_ “Why would you doom the future of our kind?” a boy with pale skin and black hair spat back. “Aren’t you supposed to be a goddess,  _ Hylia _?” _

_ “Brother!” a young girl shouted. Freckled face, innocent and absolutely shocked by her brother’s attitude towards the goddess. _

_ “What Fi?” he shouted back. “She has a lot of nerve to just waltz in, tell us  _ our _ father is going to be the very thing to end the world and then give us a path we have to walk on. I refuse to accept this!” _

_ Hylia’s laugh was eerie, a chill going down the young children’s spine, “Blame your father for his terrible decisions.” _

_ “How dare you!” the young boy growled. _

_ “Admit it child,” Hylia sighed. “Even you have noticed the strange behaviors your father has begun to take up. He is much less the man he used to be. _

_ “That doesn’t mean—” _

_ “Ghirahim, please!” Fi pleaded. “We shouldn’t argue with this goddess! What if she chooses to curse us?” _

_ Hylia smiled at the young girl and smoothed out her hair with a knowing look. Ghirahim cursed under his breath. He knew that look. He had seen it on so many faces throughout his whole life. One that would stab you in the back when you least expected it. One that would grant exactly what his sister just said. _

_ She would curse one of them, and it wasn’t as punishment. It was just her plan. _

_ “Fi, father will be angry if he doesn’t get his supper, you go get it,” Ghirahim said trying to hide his defeat. _

_ “Okay!” _

_ She happily left. The goddess scared her. The goddess was frightening because she was nowhere near as benevolent as everyone deemed her to be. To have her right in front of them, telling them who their father would become, who they would become, was surreal. _

_ He hated it. _

_ A sharp pain in his arm brought him out of his thoughts, “You are to tell me your father, Demise, has not given you these marks of hatred?” _

_ “It’s not…” _

_ Her omniscient blue eyes that encompassed the world stared into him, “You are to lie to me? Tell me where else you would have gotten these bruises?” _

_ Ghirahim wisely remained silent. There was no way to argue with her. He knew that she was aware of that. She was a goddess—all seeing and shit. Ghirahim hated being an open book. He hated the way she looked through him and saw everything about him. There were no secrets with the goddess. _

_ “I adore you child,” the goddess spoke. “I believe you deserve better. I believe you would grow into a fine man. A suiting husband.” _

_ “Never,” he said too quickly. _

_ “Perhaps not,” she didn’t sound disappointed. “Not mine at least. But for someone down the road, they will do whatever it takes to keep you alive.” _

_ “...If they loved me, they would,” Ghirahim said not sure what to say to that.  _

_ Hylia grips his arm tighter and Ghirahim bites back the urge to yell in pain, “You love them too. You make great sacrifices for them.” _

_ “Stop,” Ghirahim gasped as the pain became to much. In his arm and in his head. “Please, I don’t want to hear anymore.” _

_ Hylia released him slowly. Her grip nearly as tight as his father’s, he could feel the bruising where her fingers laid, beginning to settle in. What kind of goddess hurts their people?  _

_ “You will know your roles soon,” Hylia said softly, pressing a soft kiss on his forehead. “I pray you like them. _

_ “Why us? Why are you doing this?” _

_ She frowned, “Because you are his offspring.” _

And so we have to take responsibility for his actions? _ It was bull shit to Ghirahim, but he wouldn’t say it out loud. Reigning in his fear and anger, he let out two slow breaths to regain himself. In. Out. It was going to be okay. _

_ “All I ask,” Ghirahim hesitated to continue, but she looked on at him with a curious gaze, “Is that you bring no harm to my sister.  _ Please, _ do what you will to me, but don’t hurt her. She’s done nothing wrong.” _

_ Hylia laughed, Ghirahim didn’t know what was funny about that. He was insulted that she found his request to protect his sister to be so amusing. Gods and their twisted humor. It pissed him off. They thought of their lives as a game. He didn’t want to be a pawn, but if it meant protecting Fi from a fate unforgiving, he would deal with it.  _

_ “How selfless, child,” Hylia calmed herself. “We’ll see if you still think that later on.” _

_ He didn’t like the sound of that.  _

_ -0-0-0- _

That’s the first dream Link ever had about Ghirahim’s and Fi’s past.

Link jolted awake. A dizziness overcoming him at the sudden movement. That dream felt so real. They were more like memories, but obviously not his.  He felt sick and felt the bile in the back of his throat, but pushed it down.

“Fi?” Link called out weakly.

“Yes?” her voice caught him from behind. “What can I do?”

Link cleared his throat, “I’m seeing something… I’m not quite sure what it is...”

Fi looked at him impassively, “What do you mean?”

He swallowed with uncertainty of how to explain this, “I saw a young… you and uh… Ghirahim? You were talking to a goddess… Hylia I think. It’s weird, it felt so real.”

His partner remained silent for a while as if to process the information. It was rare, Link thought, to see her almost at a lost of words. If she didn’t understand something, she would just tell him, but she seemed… perplexed. Link wondered if he overstepped his boundaries. Goddess, he hoped not.

“It is possibly you are seeing memories,” Link’s eyes widened by what she said. 

“What? Who’s memories?” She shrugged and it was an odd gesture for her. 

“Mine perhaps,” Fi sounded more human. More vulnerable to him than usual and he couldn’t quite place what had caused that change.

“Ghirahim seemed so different,” Link mused. “So… normal.”

Her eyes looked straight at him, and though nothing changed, it felt like she was glaring at him, though her voice remained neutral. 

“He was normal,” Fi replied. “The goddess changed him.”

Link choked slightly, “Into whatever he is now?”

“Yes.”

“Why?!” Link shouted and looked around in fear that someone or something would find them. Nothing. Silence.

“It was her duty,” Fi’s blank response came. However, it felt like that she was hiding something. She sounded bitter about it. 

“And…” Link paused to regather himself. “Demise is your father? You and Ghirahim are siblings?”

“Yes.”

Link felt sick and dropped the subject wanting to just sleep. 

It wasn’t until the morning that Link decided to finally allow his mind to actually wander to the dream last night.  Thinking about Fi—her analytical, yet caring soul—and Ghirahim who’s sadistic and creepy as siblings sent chills down his spine. They were so drastically different. 

_ Drastically _ . 

Then Demise being their father? It was a wonder that Fi didn’t end up as terrible as Ghirahim. 

Fi read his mind, “I promise you, Ghirahim isn’t as bad as I believe you think him to be.”

His eyes widened, “What? He’s trying to kill us. Took Zelda from me!”

“If you see everything you’ll understand.”

And when Link thought back to it, it did seem that the goddess Hylia was talking about plans for them. Plans that Ghirahim wasn’t pleased about. He seemed angry, hurt, but not  _ evil _ . Not like now. And he seemed to want to protect Fi as much as possible. 

Link bit his lip hard.

“I want him to confirm this,” it was stupid. He knew it as soon as he said it.

“The likelihood of him confessing anything is 5%,” Fi replied. “He does not trust you enough to tell you and he is not in his right mind. Ghirahim, my brother, is not quite there anymore.”

_ Oh _ . 

What that meant eluded him. There are many different ways to interpret that. He was considered a demon now. He can turn into a sword. Or was he the spirit of a sword just like Fi? He wouldn’t say there’s much left of either of the two children he’d seen in his dream thus far. 

Truth be told, he was afraid to see more.

Ghirahim was his enemy. He took Zelda and his helping Demise.

There’s nothing to salvage, nothing to spare. His gut was telling him that’s the way to go, his heart was telling him something else. He didn’t like it. Sympathy for the enemy wasn’t going to save Zelda. He told himself that at the start of this journey. Yet…

Link stopped that train of thought. Stretched and began to prepare himself a quick breakfast for the day. 

_ Focus _ . 

——————————————————-

Link stays by Faron for a week, checking every day on him. The soft ring continues. Periodically. It makes his heart ache. All he wants is for Ghirahim to come back with his sarcastic and crass remarks. His genuine questions of concern that he tried to hide. 

He wishes he talked Ghirahim out of that stupid plan of his. It helped saved the world.

But the victory feels so empty when he can’t celebrate beside him. Zelda shows up worried about his sudden disappearance. She asks about Ghirahim, but Link isn’t too sure she really cares. 

Probably not. 

——————————————————-

As much as Link wanted them too, the dreams didn’t stop. And as much Link didn’t want to, he kept running into Ghirahim and that was becoming a  _ problem _ . Link couldn’t fight him the same way he used to when he didn’t know a damn thing about him and he was just another creature. 

“Why didn’t you tell me he was your brother?” Link asked as they walked through the temple. 

Fi didn’t reply immediately, “I did not think that was crucial to the task.”

Link huffed and wondered how the goddess could wipe away all human emotion as if it’s nothing, “Does he remember? Were his memories wiped?”

“No,” Fi said. “As I said, he’s not entirely there anymore. His memories remain, however, he is not in control of his body. The demons are. They won that fight.”

“Oh,” he gasped. “Oh  _ goddess _ . So he’s aware of everything happening?”

Fi paused, “That’s what I believe.”

_ Believe _ . That was something new for Fi. It wasn’t trailed with numbers in percentages.

She wasn’t sure. She didn’t  _ know _ .

When he was actually confronted by Ghirahim, he wondered why he didn’t kill him. He wondered why he lets him go—claimed that he enjoys toying with him, but to go that long and getting so close and then walking away?

Maybe those were the small moments where  _ Ghirahim  _ was in control and not the  _ demons _ . It was plausible, Link thought. If Fi wasn’t certain about something, then it very well could be a factor. 

But Link had to shake that off when he fought him because he couldn’t keep losing to him. He had to get Zelda back, that’s what started him on that journey. That’s what was motivating him, and the fear of hurting the thing that took her away was just an obstacle. 

Yet, again and again he spared him. His mind kept wandering to the little dreams he had.

_ “Ghirahim, are you okay?” a lady asked softly. Ghirahim stopped in his tracks the heavy basket of apples wearing him down. He stopped, even so, to speak to her.  _

_ “Yes, ma’am,” he replied, though he knew his voice sounded wrecked. Her face screwed up into even deeper concern, and the young black haired boy cleared his throat in an attempt to fix that. “I’m fine, thank you.” _

_ It was no better. _

_ She grabbed his arm softly, but it was enough to make him hiss and the woman pulled away with an apology, “Oh dear, you’re hurt. Come inside, let me look at you.” _

_ And it was a routine, Ghirahim realized. When he was hurt, a person in their village would ask if he was okay, knowing full well that he wasn’t. Knowing full well that his father’s mental health was deteriorating and he was raving and angry and  _ **_violent_ ** _. And Ghirahim didn’t want Fi to know, so he shouldered that pain, but she still found out. She didn’t fight him like he did though and it was a blessing that she was more subdued because at least one of them needed to be able to stand straight on their two feet to keep them together.  _

_ Ghirahim would take the hits if it meant she would be okay.  She would be okay if she didn’t know the extent of the arguments between his father and him. If she didn’t see the ugly yellowing bruises on his arms, or realize that occasionally it went too far and bones would be broken. Ribs would fracture, puncture his lungs, make it hard to breathe _ —

_ Their neighbors knew everything was wrong and unfair for them, but they were too afraid to intervene _ — _ they were afraid that Demise would hurt them too. _

_ Gods, Ghirahim doesn’t even know when he started to call him Demise, it wasn’t his actual name. What was his father’s real name again? Every time he tried to look back and recall the times they were happy it turns twisted and all he can see was his own inevitable _ —

_ Stop, he told himself. His father, “Demise” he earned his name, but he hadn’t meant for it to slip out for Fi to hear. She nearly cried when she heard Ghirahim call their father that. There were so many implications by just that one name.  _

_ And so the woman treated his wounds, fed him warm food because she claimed he was getting too thin _ — _ he didn’t know what it was like to have a full course meal and he became full too quickly. The woman told him to eat more. _

_ “I can’t,” he muttered helplessly. _

_ Then he remembered why when he threw it up later that night. The desire to throw it up came about after a terribly vivid memory of being beaten by father for eating “too much” and forcing him to throw it up.  _

_ There wasn’t much food that he ate, but it was enough to upset Demise.  _

_ He wanted to cry because everything hurt, Demise wanted him dead and he was going to be late bringing back the apples, and he needed to get there before Fi did so she didn’t see him get beaten to a pulp and so that he won’t take his anger out on her andheneededtostopsneakingawaytootherpeople’shousesbeforetheywantednothingtodowith _ —

_ Stop. _

_ Deep breath. _

_ “Thank you ma’am,” Ghirahim said as he left, cleaned up, looking as if he hadn’t just puked up everything he ate. As if he wasn’t still feeling the pain of beaten skin and battered bones. _

_ No. _

_ Chin up. Walk tall. Take it. Protect her. _

_ As soon as he walked through that front door, a chill went down his spine. He went to the kitchen, put the apples on the floor. _

_ Deep breath. _

_ Turn. _

_ Demise stood above him, glowering. Anger. Rage. Hatred.  _ **_Murder_ ** _. _

_ Fuck, he willed himself not to cry and beg for mercy. He took it and it  _ **_hurt, hurt, hurt_ ** _.  _

_ He laid out on the floor for a while thinking about how numb he felt at that moment. Thought about all the places he was touched that he shouldn’t have been. All the new bruises on his body that could map out the tale of a horrible abuse story and leave the clues of murder. A warm liquid was running down his arm, his leg, his head. _

_ Oh.  _

_ He was  _ **_bleeding_ ** _. _

_ At that moment, the only thought that came was that he should clean that up before it stains the floor and Demise was angry again and the punishment came back. _

_ The second thought came when he attempted to perform the action. _

_ Oh. _

_ He couldn’t  _ **_move_ ** _. _

_ The third thought came rather alarmingly quick after the second. _

_ He would bleed to death on this floor and no one would care. The villagers would mourn, but he could see his neighbors saying they saw it coming. “ _ Why didn’t you do something then _?!” He would ask as he watched them conduct a funeral. _

_ Or perhaps he wouldn’t have one and Demise would bury him in the backyard, or throw him in river to be washed away. _

_ The fourth and final thought before he passed out from the dizziness, the pain, and terrible smell of iron was that of Fi and her tears and begging him not to leave her. _

_ Not with  _ **_him_ ** _. _

_ That was the only thought that made him survive until Demise grabbed him an hour later and threw him in the bedroom, yelling about the bloody floor, slapped him awake, and forced him and his broken body to  _ **_fucking clean_ ** _ before he became the mop. _

_ He snuck away again that night. Begged a neighbor to let him stay. They didn’t let him finish his plea before dragging him in to treat him. _

**_Death_ ** _ would bring him bliss, but he couldn’t leave Fi alone.  _

Demise was terrible he concluded after trying to shake the memory of the dream away. Terrible. Awful. 

Pain and sorrow filled his gut even though Ghirahim was talking elaborately in front of him, trying to taunt and goad Link. He started feeling pain as well whenever he woke from those dreams. A soreness from spots he didn’t remember getting hit at, an excruciating pain in his head, his legs, his arms.

That was miserable.

And when Link had once during the battle knocked Ghirahim off his feet onto the ground splayed out in front of him—prone, all he could think about was the young boy with black hair beaten and bruised and bleeding.

Just like him now.

“Do you feel pain?” Link let it slip through his lips on accident and Ghirahim blinked for a second. Either of confusion of the question or why Link was taking the time to talk to him when he could be attempting to plunge this blade through his chest.

“What a sadistic question,” Ghirahim smirked. “You want to know if  _ I _ feel pain?  _ What _ , now that you have me at your mercy, you wish to  _ torture  _ me? Make me  _ your  _ toy?  _ My _ , hero, I didn’t know you were interested in such a thing.”

Link swallowed, but he felt like he was choking, “Do you?”

Ghirahim’s smirk grew, “I haven’t in a  _ long  _ time.” 

That answer hurt Link more than he thought it was because when paired with these dreams—Fi’s dreams maybe, but she wasn’t always in them—the Ghirahim in front of him seemed so damn different.

“Why do you hesitate hero?” Ghirahim asked scanning him. Link felt  _ naked _ .

“Why do you always hesitate?” Link spat back trying not to feel intimidated when the man was at  _ his _ mercy.

“I like to have fun,” came the casual answer.

“Was that what Demise thought when he left you splayed on the floor like this?” and Link didn’t know where that came from. He didn’t know why that came out so easily, so vehemently. He wanted to believe that Ghirahim was still there. Not this demon toy. He so wanted to believe in what  _ Fi  _ believed. But he kept seeing what the creature that took  _ his _ Zelda and it set him on edge so much so that he couldn’t control the urge to poke at the wounds.

It was enough to trigger a change in Ghirahim. His eyes flickered into something of shock and  _ rage _ .

“How  _ dare _ you?!” he bared his teeth and pushed Link off of him with such a force, that when he landed, he heard a sickening crack.

“Master, I have detected a cracked rib,” Fi chimed in calmly. “I suggest you avoid fighting lest you worsen it.”

_ Yeah, a little late _ , Link thought when he saw the pure look of hatred in his eyes, but to Link, it wasn’t directed towards him.  _ He was reliving it _ . And that thought was more horrifying than anything else because  _ goddess _ , Link didn’t go through what he did, but having those dreams and seeing it as if it  _ was _ him made  _ him  _ sick. Feeling the same pain as he did every time he woke up made him almost throw up—-made it almost impossible for him to stand, to hold his sword, to speak.

Being the victim?

It was a low blow, he knew it. And he was angry at himself for saying that. 

The hero expected Ghirahim to lash out—to try and kill him. He didn’t. 

There was another emotion in Ghirahim’s eyes and Link thought  _ that’s him _ . The boy that was in his dreams. 

Fear, pain, hurt,  _ goddess  _ he looked absolutely tortured. 

He crumpled to his knees and Link so desperately wanted to apologize—he knew he should, because at this moment it was Ghirahim, not the demons, and he had  _ hurt  _ him. His conscience wouldn’t let that stay. Torturing him like that? It was uncharacteristic of him but the dreams were driving him  _ insane _ .

_ Imagine living it, you asshole _ , Link admonished himself.

“Master—”

“Fi, what is the probably that he will attack me if I approach?” Link whispered. 

The answer shocked him, “Below 50%, master. It is more likely he will simply flee.”

_ Fuck _ .

Link cleared his throat, “Gods, I’m so sorry.”

Ghirahim’s eyes snapped up at him and they were dark and broken, and then he was gone. 

He hadn’t taken a single step forward.

“I fucked up,” Link murmured.

“I suggest you should try a different approach,” Fi suggested unhelpfully, and Link swore that he heard a hint of anger and sarcasm in her voice.

Even she knew that he was terrible.

Link didn’t sleep well that night. In fact, he wasn’t sure if slept at all. He was too afraid of nightmares coming back to haunt him—memories that weren’t his pervading his mind. His brain was wrecked with the crime he committed earlier—hurting Ghirahim like that was never his intention. Not when he realized that Ghirahim was so much more human than Link thought. Realizing that Ghirahim was still inside his demon afflicted body. 

Fi noticed his distress, “You are upset.”

“Yes,” Link sighed staring at the sky. “I hurt him.”

“I didn’t think you cared,” Fi, he was sure, didn’t mean it as an insult. Just a fact. That she didn’t think he cared about Ghirahim’s wellbeing.

“That was before I was seeing these memories,” Link confessed blushing slightly as if it was scandalous to be seeing such. “You said these might be yours?”

Fi nodded, “I did.”

“Then why aren’t you in all of them?”

There was a long moment of silence. Fi simply stared at him for a while and Link couldn’t see what she was thinking—never really could. But she seemed stunned, Link guessed. Really, Link was hoping she would come up with an explanation quickly. 

Link decided to speak again, hoping to clarify, hoping to get some answers, “Like sometimes I’m seeing it through his eyes, and other times I’m like watching him from above.”

Fi remained silent. They dropped the conversation and Link felt slightly more nervous at that prospect.

-0-0-0-

_ “Where did you get this?” one of the villagers who dragged him into their house asked softly.  _

You know where _ , Ghirahim thought, but decided against angering another person, “ _ Him _.” _

_ The woman scowled while calling her husband to come over and bring more supplies for first aid. She muttered under her breath words of frustration and insults towards Demise. Well, at least everyone knew how terrible he was. _

_ “You and her _ — _ your sister _ — _ you can’t be torturing yourselves with him,” her husband said when he walked in. _

_ “Where are we to go?” Ghirahim asked softly. A genuine question. If there was an escape, he’d take it. If only Fi was able to leave, he’d take the risk. Anything. _

_ The couple exchanged glances with a somber expression. There was lull in the conversation as if they were both debating what would be useful to him. There was no escape. He’d find them. Beat them both within an inch of their lives. Or maybe this time he would just kill him and call it a day. No one would know _ — _ he could simply say he hadn’t found him yet and then silence Fi and it would all be over. Say that they were attacked by something out there and he just barely managed to save them. He was a casualty.  _

_ “Sweetheart?” the woman called out with worry lacing her voice.  _

_ He supposed she was calling out to him for a while, “Yes ma’am?” _

_ “You could have ran away a long time ago,” the man said. “Why haven’t you?” _

_ “I tried once,” Ghirahim confessed with a shrug. “He always finds me. I can’t escape him no matter what I do.” _

_ Maybe that was too telling. Maybe he should have shut his mouth, let the splotches of painful purples, blues, and yellows on this canvas tell the story for him. They spoke for themselves didn’t they? Didn’t they tell the world how terrible homelife was? No number of falls could end up with that many bruises. No number of training days could lead to trauma he had that made him lose sleep. _

_ Wasn’t his body enough for people to realize that he needed help?  _

_ “I just want to save Fi,” Ghirahim’s voice broke and wavered. He wasn’t going to cry, he wasn’t. He hadn’t done that in so long. Not since Demise made it impossible to breathe when he started. He hid Fi’s cries from him and when he did hear on accident because she just couldn’t shut down like he could _ — _ he took the fall. He wouldn’t let him break her too. _

_ That would be a crime. _

_ The couple that took him in that night didn’t respond. They didn’t offer him food no matter how starved he was. They didn’t question him further nor try to offer false comfort and maybe that was the best thing anybody could do considering how it never reassured him no matter how hard they tried. _

_ “Ghira,” Fi murmured softly once Demise had retired and finished with him. “Ghira, you’re bleeding.” _

_ “Yes,” he limped through the door, shutting it softly. It hurt to walk. He was so  _ sore _. _

_ Fi gasped softly as he nearly collapsed on the ground, “Let me see.” _

_ “No,” came the other curt response. “Go to bed.” _

_ Fi whimpered, “I don’t like this. I don’t like this, why is father doing this?” _

_ Ghirahim sighed softly trying to hide his frown, “Fi—” _

_ Fi didn’t let him finish. Pulled him into her tight embrace and despite how much it hurt, he collapsed into it. Bit his lip and stopped himself from crying to. _

_ It  _ hurts _. _

_Hylia appeared again and he thought it was_ ** _the_** _day. It wasn’t. She seemed upset with Ghirahim’s condition. His pallor was too pale. His face gaunt and too thin_ — _did he weigh anything anymore?_ _A limp that never seemed to go away_ — _breathing that was too ragged to be healthy._

_ “My dear,” she gasped almost as if it was her in his state. _

_ “Goddess,” Ghirahim murmured in between shallow breaths. “I _ — _ to what do I owe this pleasure?” _

_ She ignored him, took his face in her hands and suddenly there was a warmth flowing through him. Ghirahim sighed at the relief he suddenly felt, as if he was unburdened. All the wounds he felt seemingly disappeared, goddess, he hadn’t felt this way in so long.  _

_ He hadn’t realized he collapsed into her arms. She was murmuring something to him, petting his unkempt black hair. _

_ Ghirahim fell asleep there. _

_ His duties forgotten. _

_ And then everything came back full force. Should have been carefully on his return home. Fi was there, so was Demise red in the face with rage. _

_ And she watched him as he _ —

_ She cried hard. _

_ He bit back the urge to scream in pain.  _

_ And then suddenly he was looking down at what Demise was doing. At his body lying there broken and bleeding, staring vacantly at the ceiling. Ah, this again. Here he was, watching his body slowly getting beaten to death. Watching his body get violated in such a way that even though he wasn’t there right now _ — _ not in the moment _ — _ he thought he might puke. Watching his sister crumple to her knees, vaguely hearing her beg him not to hurt him anymore. He couldn’t really make out what Demise said, but he slapped her. She cried harder. He left her. _

_ Ghirahim didn’t move. Laid there, eyes open.  _

_ Did he die? _

_ -0-0-0- _

Link rubbed his eyes too hard trying to wake himself up from it. He looked at his body for the marks that weren’t there, the pain was so unbearable—-why was he feeling this? The in and out of body experiences made him nauseous. The idea that Ghirahim died—oh goddess had he died before by Demise’s hand? Had he been brought back by the goddess to fulfill her bidding? That was probably the scariest thought. Ghirahim brought back to endure torture once again only to be used for a goddess’s plans.

His heart absolutely  _ ached _ for Ghirahim. He felt like this was too intimate. To be seeing all parts of his past without him even knowing about it, why? Who was he seeing this from? Why was he sometimes watching from above and then sometimes felt that pain as if it was his own?

“Fi?” he murmured softly trying to keep back the bile in his throat.

“Yes master?” Fi appeared before him.

“Ghirahim he…” Link licked his dry lips. “Did—has he die before?”

Fi stared for a long moment before regarding his question, “Yes. So you’ve seen that memory. It was the worst day of my life.”

But it said with so little emotion that it almost felt like it held no meaning to her. He knew that that was wrong. That Fi was like this because of Hylia, but it just felt so wrong.

“How come he’s alive again?” Link hesitated to ask as he drained his waterskin and made a mental note to refill that later.

“Hylia,” came the short answer. “Revived him as a mercy.”

“I don’t know what mercy can come if he just returned to be tortured and beaten again,” Link bit out.

“My brother and I thought the same thing.”

-0-0-0-

Coming across Ghirahim so soon was a shock for him. He hadn’t expected him to just appear—though he had noticed that he was running into Ghirahim in the unlikeliest of places as of late. The other notable occurrence was that Ghirahim hadn’t noticed  _ him _ yet. It was rare that he snuck up on him.

“Fi?” Link whispered. “What’s the situation?”

“Threat level is below 50% master,” Fi replied.

_ Oh _ . Well, that hadn’t changed from the last time he saw him. 

“I mean, what should I do?” Link asked. “Should I walk up to him?”

“What do you think?”

If that didn’t sound snarky for Fi, Link didn’t know what did.

“Why are you hiding?” Ghirahim’s voice broke their conversation. “Show yourself  _ hero _ .”

Link didn’t  _ want  _ to, but he felt like there would be more severe consequences if he didn’t show himself. Slowly, cautiously he revealed himself to Ghirahim and made his way closer.

“I didn’t expect you here,” Link tried to be casual to avoid certain death, but Ghirahim looks unguarded.

“I didn’t expect you here either,” Ghirahim shrugged noncommittally. “Yet, here we are.”

“Fi?”

“Threat level is below 25%.”

It  _ decreased _ ?

Link took several deep breaths, but he was really just seeing the dreams—nightmares from before that continued to plague his mind every time he thought about Ghirahim. How his body ached from the beatings he saw Ghirahim take and it still lingers there. The bile rose in the back of his throat once more and this time it was hard to swallow. Keep your thoughts focused in front.

“Hi,” Link supplied lamely as if he wasn’t afraid his life was on the line still.

“You needn’t worry,” Ghirahim sighed overdramatically, “I am not here to take your life or fight you. Not now.” 

_ Not now _ .

Well, there was no part of him that was even slightly relieved by that revelation.

“I’m more myself right now,” Ghirahim continued. 

“You feel in control?” Link asked stunned with where that question came from. 

Ghirahim’s eyes looked at him with confusion briefly, “What?”

“Look, I’m sorry,” Link blurted out once more feeling like he lacked control of his mouth. “I said something last time and I know it was wrong of me—”

“ _ Shut up _ .”

Link bit his lip hard. He could taste the iron in his mouth and it just made him feel sick because the taste of blood just reminded him of—

“You need to get out my business,” Ghirahim spat. “I don’t know how you know what you do, but…” his eyes wandered to Fi and there was a flicker of something else that left Link feeling a pang in his heart. “Fi…”

“Hello,” Fi said just as she always had. “Greetings, brother.”

Ghirahim looked so hurt at her voice, Link thought he would flee again. But he didn’t, walked towards Fi instead, slowly, hesitantly. Fi lowered herself to be on the same level as Ghirahim. 

Then, he embraced her. It was odd to Link, as if this was the first time Ghirahim was really seeing her. Maybe it was the first time he was really seeing her with his own eyes and not the bloodlust of the demons inside. Link looked at Fi, but she released an oddly  _ human _ sigh and embraced him back. 

“I’m so sorry,” Ghirahim murmured into her shoulder. “I failed you.”

“But you didn’t.”

“What do you mean?” Ghirahim backed away to look at her—really look at her. “I couldn’t protect you from this.” He looked down briefly before cupping her face in his hands. “You don’t even sound the same… all emotion, gone…”

Fi wrapped her arms around him again, and for a second, Link saw the two children he had watched grow up in those dreams who suffered too much for simply existing. 

“You protected me,” Fi replied in a softer tone than Link had ever heard her. “You gave up everything for me. You always have.”

Goddess, she was so human right then. So, inexplicably, innocent and  _ young _ . Link felt like he was intruding on something too personal for an outsider like him. Then again, how much of an outsider was he when he was already sharing too intimate memories of a young abused child. He didn’t think he deserved to see all of that. 

Ghirahim and Fi remained silent for a while longer, before he broke apart from her and seemingly remembered that Link did in fact exist and was in fact rather uncomfortable with this interaction but happy the siblings were reunited in a situation that wasn’t Link and Ghirahim trying to kill one another. 

“U-um,” Link stuttered uncertain with how to go about this. “I… Ghirahim, I know a lot more about you than I would like—”

“ _ Please _ ,” Ghirahim scoffed. 

“But I wanted to understand you after I had that first dream and I found out you two were related,” Link pressed not trying to let Ghirahim push this away. “And they didn’t stop. The dreams—nightmares didn’t…”

“I figured considering what you said to me before,” Ghirahim snapped. 

“Brother,” Fi chastised. “Let him speak.” Ghirahim huffed, but remained silent.

Link took a deep breath, “I want to help you. Free you from this.” His hands waved vaguely in front of him at Ghirahim. Ghirahim’s expression devolved into one of puzzlement and looked to Fi for confirmation. She nodded. 

“I think he has seen my memories,” Fi admitted. “He knows about the darker parts of our past and vaguely about how we ended up the way we did.”

“Lovely.”

There wasn’t much lovely about the pain he had been experiencing for too many nights and a part of him still didn’t believe that the memories were Fi’s. But that wasn’t a pressing matter, he needed to figure this out. Fi didn’t want him to fight Ghirahim, she wanted him to help. So he would do what he could and hope Ghirahim would listen.

“Can you work with us?” Link asked.

“No.”

Oh. He wasn’t expecting it to be so quick and punctuated. Ghirahim’s eyes flared up once more, a look of rage briefly there and then…

“ _ My _ , the little hero wants to help little ol’ me,” Ghirahim snarls. “It’s just to clear a conscious not a genuine desire. But what about that maiden of yours. Have you forgotten her already?”

Link’s nostrils flared at the mention of Zelda and suddenly every desire to help him faded, “Where is she?!”

Ghirahim only laughed and Fi spun around to face him in utter confusion. Link called Fi back, telling her it was time to fight. She obeyed, and he drew out his sword. Ghirahim was making this harder than it had to be and Link frankly wasn’t in the mood for this.

“Where  _ is _ she?!” 

“ I won’t disclose that.” Ghirahim licked his lips, snapped his finger, and his sword was before him in a flash. 

This was going very wrong very quick and Link didn’t like it. This wasn’t how things were supposed to go. He knew that, but every inch of his body was telling him to just fight. That he was a monster who needed to be slain because he hurt his best friend and was working for evil.

But then he was gone. 

“He lost control,” Fi said simply as the diamonds faded. 

“Tch,” Link scoffed collapsing to the ground. “I can’t help him if he won’t let me Fi.”

Fi looked down at him, “I didn’t think you would help. There is only a 37% chance that you’ll be able to convince him that you are trying to help.”

“Well, if he’s not going to put in the effort…”

“It’s not effort,” Fi replied simply. “It’s time. If he cannot stave off the demons long enough for us to speak to him in his right mind, then there is very little we can do. That’s the major factor. The second factor is, in fact, his faith in us and his dedication. He submitted to his fate long ago. Suddenly bringing up the idea of fighting it after all the pain he went through is probably a hard thing for him to want to do.”

“Pain?” Link sat up slowly. 

“The transition was not painless,” Fi met his gaze. “Demons are not friendly creatures.”

Link felt sick. If he had to go through that too…

“Fi, are you sure these are your memories?” Link queried once more as they continued their trek. “I feel his pain every time he gets hurt. I feel his suffering, anger, sorrow. Nothing of you. I deal with his out of body experiences.”

“Then perhaps they are his,” Fi answered simply. “That would be the logical conclusion. I am uncertain as to how though.”

Link sighed as he carefully climbed his way up, “How? I mean, what does it take to share the memories of another?”

Fi remained silent for a moment too long and Link was beginning to worry. If it was something bad, Link was actually going to puke and that wasn’t going to be pretty because Link had been holding back that desire a long time ago. 

“A shared bond,” Fi supplied after several minutes. “It means that people are tied together by some fate. Bonds vary from enemies, to friends, to lovers, to just simply any other interaction. This was all folklore when I was a child though.” Fi peered at Link’s startled expression, “Rarely do these bonds lead to one of them actually physically feeling everything the person in the memory does. That is a relatively strong bond. One that typically holds a lot of significance for both parties in the long run.” 

Link gasped a short “oh” before rubbing his eyes frantically, and trying to breathe without panicking. He was bonded to his enemy, but the bond is so strong that he feels his pain, but it has a deeper meaning than usual. With  _ Ghirahim _ of all people. He really hoped it was Fi’s, maybe it still is. Maybe it is hers.

“Have you had this before?”

“No,” Fi settled next to him, a rare thing for her to do. “As I said before, this was a folklore in my day.”

Link swallowed. Blinks a few times and silently prays to the goddess that this isn’t so. 

“You sounded very…normal when you were with him earlier,” Link desperately changed the subject.

Fi didn’t comment, “I felt… happy having him hold me like that again. It brought back pleasant memories.”

Pleasant and memories never went in the same sentence for what Link had seen. 

-0-0-0-

_ He awoke to the sound of sobbing. Blinking several times, the world around him finally began to take form. It was still dark, slowly becoming light. There was ground beneath him. It was cold and hard and it made his back ache. A light groan escaped his mouth. The sob beside him halted and turned into a gasp. _

_ “Brother?”  _

_ Oh, that voice. He missed it.  _

_ “Fi?” he croaked out with the way his throat felt like sandpaper. “How long…?” _

_ “You were dead!” Fi exclaimed miserably. “You were dead, I watched you die. I saw him kill you…” _

_ His poor, poor sister. She was tortured and he was the cause of it. _

_ “How am I back?” _

_ “Hylia,” Fi sobbed. “But I didn’t think it worked. I thought I was going to be…” _

_ Alone, Ghirahim supplied when she did not. She laid her head on his chest and for once in his life it did not hurt for her to do so. He could breathe and there was no pain or rattling of something that should not be there. It felt  _ amazing _. It felt like he was living. Sluggishly, he combed his fingers through her short hair murmuring apologies and words of comfort to stop her crying. _

_ “Where are we?” he questioned upon realizing that wasn’t where he remembered drawing his last breath. It wasn’t their home.  _

_ “My temple,” it wasn’t Fi. It was Hylia. Her voice sent chills down his spine and he hated it. She never made him comfortable for what a goddess should be.  _

_ Ghirahim groaned, not trusting himself to say anything, but Hylia stood before them with a small smile on her face. It wasn’t one that made him think she was planning something else. There was genuine concern in her expression that made him deflate a little. _

_ He cleared his throat, but that did hurt, “Thank you.” _

_ “Of course, child,” Hylia replied as she leaned down and cupped his cheek, and he felt a rush of something warm flow through his body. _

_ There was a burst of energy he suddenly felt  relief from the pain. His throat wasn’t sore anymore, he felt amazing. He had the most energy at that moment than ever before.  _

_ “How long?” he asked again. _

_ “Three days,” Hylia stated calmly. “I didn’t know you had died. Something felt wrong, but Fi didn’t come to me until today.” _

_ Ghirahim rubbed his eyes and gave a small smile to Fi. He needed to reassure her that he he was alright. He needed to let her know that he was alive and that this was real.  _

_ “What about him? Demise?” _

_ He couldn’t even call him father anymore. Fi looked so hurt, but understanding. Hearing him being called that to her face by her brother was probably the biggest revelation. He was cruel and probably going to be the end of him.  _

_ “Your whereabouts are unknown to him,” said Hylia not directly answering his question. “But our timeline has accelerated, we must move forward with this. If he has killed you already, there’s no time to waste.” _

_ Already? The hell was that supposed to mean? _

_ “Did you anticipate me dying?” Ghirahim asked already fearing the answer. _

_ Hylia hummed, “It was in the stars.” _

_ He collapsed back to the ground suddenly very weary, “Right. Of course it was.” _

_ “So we will press forward,” Hylia continued ignoring him. “Return home.” _

_ “What?!” Ghirahim shot back up. “After everything you’re just going to let me walk back to that hell hole?!” _

_ “It’s best,” Hylia replied looking at him with those same omniscient blue eyes that he had always hated. “I will save you the trouble of travelling on your legs. Bye my children. I will see you soon.” _

_ Why was the goddess so unlike how they had been told she would be? Why was she so cruel, unforgiving? How could history be so wrong? Maybe she used to be good _ — _ maybe she used to be as benevolent as the people say.  _

_ Maybe. _

_ But as he stood in front those same doors that he always loathed to go everyday of the past few years, all those “maybe’s” was just white noise in the back of his head. They didn’t mean anything when he still had to suffer. _

_ How was this a mercy? _

_ Fi took his hand and squeezed it. And he suddenly walked into the small house to see Demise sitting at the dinner table with a deep frown, fingers tapping on the table. Ghirahim wondered how long or how hard he had been doing that considering there were dents in that table.  _

_ “You’re alive?” he growled. _

_ Ghirahim gulped, “Yes sir.” _

_ “Huh,” Demise stood from the table. “Did that wretched goddess bring you back?” _

_ Ghirahim remained silent. _

_ “You really are the bane of my existence,” he said through gritted teeth. “I thought I got rid of you!” _

_ “Father stop it!” Fi shouted and Ghirahim’s eye widened in fear.  _

_ “Fi!” Ghirahim hissed. _

_ “Don’t hurt him anymore!” Fi continued despite Ghirahim’s protest. “You’re a monster.” _

_ Demise’s hand went for Fi. _

_ Ghirahim didn’t know he moved until he felt the flash of pain himself. He was staring at the ceiling, the cool wooden floor against his back, dazed.  Then, he was sure something happened to him. He was not quite sure when he made it back to his room with Fi tending to his wounds apologizing over and over and over again. He was not quite sure when Fi was planning a way to sneak them both out of the house.  _

_ Then, he was in a forest and Fi was handing him food. _

_ “Brother, you have to eat, please eat,” she begged. _

_ “Fi, I’ve been fine,” Ghirahim protested. “It’s just been three days since I came back, I’m sure I’m not going to die of hunger.” _

_ Her eyes widened in fear, “Brother, that was over a week ago.” _

Oh.

_ He had lost time. _

_ Again. _

-0-0-0-

Link winced as he came too and heard two voices. 

Two.

“Fi?” he whispered looking warily around him trying to pinpoint the source of the voices. It took him a moment to realize Fi hadn’t responded to him. “Fi?” he whispered again more panicked. She left him? Link tried hard not to panic. He needed to handle this with care.

He stood up slowly continuing to look around him in search of the voices. Why was Fi gone? Why didn’t she answer him? His shoulders were tense. It still wasn’t light out and that made it so much worse. The voices grew louder and Link knew he was heading in the right direction, but he felt wary. Why were there voices so close to him? That was the most unnerving thing that was happening.

He peeked beyond the branches and his breath caught. 

Fi was with Ghirahim. They were talking in soft whispers to one another. Ghirahim looked oddly vulnerable, Fi looked surprisingly angry—something he didn’t even know she could be. This wasn’t what he expecting.

They both of course noticed him, he supposes he wasn’t all that stealthy when he realized who it was. Fi stared blankly at him and Ghirahim frowned. 

“Are you just going to gape at us, Skychild?” Ghirahim asked rolling his eyes. “Get from the bushes, hero, it’s annoying.”

“Sorry,” Link mumbled but didn’t move.

“I’m not going to hurt you, hero,” Ghirahim snapped. When Link still didn’t budge, he looked to Fi, “Fi, tell him.”

“Master,” Fi stated and Ghirahim visibly gagged, “The likelihood of Ghirahim attacking you is less than 10%.”

“So there’s a 10% chance that he will,” but he moved towards them.

“To think I was about to be the one to call you master like that,” Ghirahim scrunched up his nose. “I’d take this pain over that.”

Link frowned, “You don’t mean that.”

Ghirahim’s eyes shot over to him in confusion, “What do you know?” 

“I’m pretty sure…” Link looked to Fi for confirmation to say what he was about to say. Fi stared at him and then looked to her brother.

“Do you remember those folklores about those shared bonds?” Fi asked. Ghirahim simply nodded but didn’t take his eyes off Link. “Link has been sharing your memories, brother. You two share a bond.”

Ghirahim didn’t move, simply stared, “Those were old wives tales Fi.” Ghirahim’s expression remained blank, “You expect me to believe that all of a sudden this is true?”

“What did Hylia say brother?” Fi made it sound more like a statement than anything. 

He grimaced at the name, stepped back a bit and wraps his arms around himself and Link just saw the boy that was tortured for so much of his life.

“I don’t want to believe it either, Ghirahim,” Link decided to speak. “But that… that may help us free you.”

Ghirahim’s eyes shot up to look at Link and confusion morphed into his face, “You keep saying that, skychild. What do you mean free me?”

“The demons,” Link gestured vaguely in Ghirahim’s direction, “I know that they are the reason you do what you do.”

“Have you seen that memory yet?” he asked, but there was no accusation, just curiosity. 

Link shook his head, “No, not yet.” He paled at the thought of having to relive that one, “I don’t want to. It hurts.”

“Hurts?” Ghirahim snarled. “Pah, you’ve felt nothing—”

“I feel the pain you feel,” Link blurted out and immediately regretted it. At that point, he assumed that it was too late to actually backtrack. “I sometimes feel the pain that you feel—it’s like I’m reliving them and experiencing it myself. It… sucks.”

Ghirahim remained silent and his expression was painfully blank again and it reminded him of the child from long ago. The child who learned that he needed to hide how felt in order to survive. The child that learned that pain would come if he showed any hint of  _ anything _ around Demise.

Finally, Ghirahim smirked, it’s weak and pained, but it’s something, “What a grand use of vocabulary, skychild. Sucks? That’s how you describe my suffering?” There was only a hint of amusement, but he didn’t seem angry and that made Link think that there was progress being made—progress that could only be made when Ghirahim wasn’t being overtaken by demons.

Link swallowed, “Sorry. I just—”

“Forget it,” Ghirahim waved him off. “What’s done is done. Freeing me from the demons is impossible.”

“I don’t believe that,” Link stated firmly folding his arms against his chest. “You can’t just give up—”

“You try going through what I did and then lecture me about giving up!” Ghirahim shouted with eyes filled with hatred. “You’ll see why I gave in.”

“You should’ve let me—”

Ghirahim spun around to Fi, “You should’ve heard your screams Fi! That hurt more than what I went through.”

Fi fell silent. Link looked between the two seeing the siblings that suffered, seeing people that needed his help and didn’t know how he could ignore this. Fi ignored her duties to the goddess to speak to Ghirahim and he was fighting those demons just to speak to them.

“How long do you have left?” Link hesitantly walks towards them.

“Not long now,” he sighed. “I have to go before I hurt you two.”

Link hand reached out for him but stopped short when he realized what he was doing. Ghirahim looked at his hand and then back at Link analyzing him. Judging him.

“Sorry, I’m a bit of a tactile person,” Link admitted.

“I’ve had bad experiences with tactile people, skychild.”

Link wanted to throw up with that statement because all he could see was what Demise had done to Ghirahim and the pain he felt. 

“I’m sorry, really sorry about what I said to you the other day,” Link apologized softly.

Ghirahim huffed, “If you hadn’t said it, I probably wouldn’t be here right now. I don’t like to relive it, but that was the one thing that brought  _ me  _ back.”

Because it defined his life. The villagers knew him for his wounds and needs, not because of who he was. He lost that energy so many years ago

“I’ll help you,” Link proclaimed. “You can’t stop me.”

“I’ve noticed.”

“Will you let me?”

“You wouldn’t listen.”

“Will you help me help you?” Link pushed and Ghirahim lips pressed into a thin line. 

“We’ll see what I can do,” he tapped his head lightly and smirked. “My body is not always my own. It’s not easy regaining control and maintaining it.” And he was gone. The diamonds floated where he used to stand. Link blinked a few times to regather himself.

“That went well, Master,” Fi spoke and Link jumped because she had went silent after Ghirahim shouted at her.  Reminded her what sacrifice he had made for her, but he still wasn’t aware of what that was. 

Link scratched the back of his head and looked out into the forest, “You think so? I still don’t know if he will help.”

“He’ll try,” Fi confirms. “Demise may not like that.”

Right. Demise.

———————————————————--

_ Demise found them quickly, Ghirahim noted. He was nearly drowned by him in the local river because he was so angry that they had tried to escape. Ghirahim wanted to cry. He wanted to get away, but everywhere they went, Demise followed and found them, and hurt them.  _

_ Fi was forced to watch Ghirahim nearly drown several times and she cried out everytime. Before he knew it, he was back in that cursed home, dried, and told to fetch things from the market. He went back to that routine. It was easier than fighting it. He would be saved soon, right? _

_ Right? _

————————————————————--

“Will you return to being human, Fi?” Link asks, desiring a distraction from those memories. 

Fi shrugs, uncharacteristically, “Depends on what the goddess has left for me. Originally, I was supposed to be placed back into the pedestal, my soul sealed with the master sword. I don’t think she anticipated me regaining my human form though.”

The goddess, in short, is an asshole, Link realizes. Yet, somehow, Zelda is the reincarnation of her. Gods are confusing. 

They return to the lake, the blade halves resting in the water. Undisturbed. Unchanged. Link feels his heart stop and drop like lead into his stomach. The look of despair that crosses his face must have been too apparent, as Faron chooses then to speak.

“Do not worry,” she reassures. “He still lives. Simply, it is taking time to heal.”

Link sighs audibly, falling back with relief. 

“It may be best for you to return to your comrades,” Faron offers. “It will be awhile before he is near recovery.”

“Fi?” Link doesn’t trust himself to make the decision.

“Yes,” she admits. “We should return. I will not rest until I know for certain he is well though. Zelda needs you.”

The weary hero simply nods. There isn’t going to be any amount of sleep that will ease his mind from this.There isn’t really anything that could stop him from worrying that Ghirahim may not survive and all of this was for nought. 

He returns to Skyloft with nary an issue. Only to be told by Zelda that Impa is gone. Gone before Link had a chance to say goodbye. Zelda wasn’t pleased that he wasn’t there to see her off. Link wanted to believe that was only the reason, but he knew that she was mainly upset with the fact that Link had chosen to save Ghirahim over remaining with them.

She wouldn’t understand.

“Then make me understand,” she had said. And he tried, Fi tried, but Zelda had already boxed in her mindset that he couldn’t be trusted. There was nothing about him that was redeemable. 

Zelda quickly changed the subject from Ghirahim whenever she got the chance, Link realized. She didn’t really want to understand. She just wanted to move on with her life and forget all that. Everyone, including her, thought he was stuck in the past. It was time to push forward, Ghirahim would either come along eventually and redeem himself, or die trying.

Link wants to be mad at them all, but he’s too tired for hate and anger. Is it wrong to want something for himself for once? Is it wrong to desire for someone to listen to him? To try to understand him?

—————————————————--

_ “I don’t like this, Ghira,” Fi clung to her brother. “I’m scared… Father has been raving since this morning…” _

_ Ghirahim patted his sister’s hand, trying to steel himself for her. He needed to be there for her, “I know. Just… just stay away from him. Okay?” _

_ “He always shouts for me,” her eyes welled up with tears. “What if he tries to—” _

_ “I won’t let him.” _

_ Fi just buried her face in his chest and he held her tightly. All he needed to do was protect her. That’s all he wanted. If that goddess just stayed away— _

_ “I can’t do that.” _

_ She  _ would  _ read his mind. _

_ “It’s time,” Hylia informed them. She wiped a stray tear from Fi’s face. “Your father is growing wilder as the days go by. It’s time we do something about that.” _

_ Ghirahim remained silent. Talking seemed to only make things worse around her. He stared at her straight in the eyes, but he noticed her staring more so at his arms. She could see them. All the bruises, the cuts. She knew what he’d done and it drove him mad. He  _ hates _ her eyes. _

_ “Come, to the temple,” she led the way. A silent march to their fates. It was unfair—they were so unlucky to have a father who would allow himself to be taken over by an evil spirit because he was desperate. To make a deal with a devil makes you one, and he just had to be an idiot and make a damn deal. It was ludacris in Ghirahim’s eyes. To then, be forced to suffer because of the actions of your parents was the stupidest thing he ever heard. He hated everything.  _

_ But if his sister can get through this okay, then he will take whatever punishment.  _

_ “Here,” she stopped before them, standing on the pedestal the sunlight giving her a more godly look than she already had. She was glowing. Hylia became the goddess she claimed to be, no longer the woman who constantly plagued his nightmares. This  _ was _ the true Hylia. _

_ “Hylia,” Fi spoke softly. “Please don’t hurt my brother.” _

_ “It’s funny,” the goddess laughed, “how you both desire for neither to get hurt and will take it onto yourselves. I wonder how long that conviction lasts.” _

_ Ghirahim hushed Fi. He didn’t want her to do anything to anger her despite how much he wanted to say so many words to her.  _

_ “Now, then,” Hylia spoke. She spoke and she spoke, long speeches that didn’t really need to be said. It wasn’t a ceremonial time. They were being put to their death essentially. “Once you are given this task, you will slumber until the time is right for you to awaken.” _

_ Of course. Ghirahim tuned her out as she continued her speech. It was nothing exciting. All he could think about was how terribly wrong everything had gone. From the day Hylia appeared in front of him when he ran away after a particularly harsh beating from his father, to now. Nothing was going right. Maybe… _

_ It was the piercing cry of his sister that brought him out of his thoughts. A cry that was so scared, hurt, upset, that made him crumple to his knees to hold her. _

_ “What? What?” he cried out worried. She was having a fit, tears streamed down her face no coherent words or sentences being formed. “What did you do?!” _

_ “Were you not listening child?” the goddess asked harshly. “I gave her role. She is to be the Demon Blade.” _

_ Ghirahim’s face paled. He froze staring up at her in pure disbelief. To give such a role to a child... No wonder Fi screamed out in such pain.  _

_ “How could you?! The Demon Blade?!” _

_ “Wielded by your father,” she continued ignoring him. “You, are to be the spirit alongside the chosen hero and the Goddess Sword.” _

_ They were destined to be spirits to  _ **_blades_ ** _? Tools, instruments in the worlds destruction and chaos?! Was that a cruel joke? _

_ “What the actual fuck?” Ghirahim snapped. “How dare you?!” _

_ “I figured it too cruel to make you wielded by your father when he has abused you so,” Hylia shrugged in the most ungodly manner. How dare she dismiss his feelings? “I am doing you a favor, darling.” _

_ Ghirahim snarled, “This is no favor! You are a  _ monster _.” _

_ Fi buried her face further in Ghirahim’s body making herself so small. Ghirahim feared for her, and it showed on his face. What did that mean for her? What did being a sword mean for the both of them? They were to lose their humanity for this? For a destiny given to them because of the mistake of their father?  _

_ Ghirahim felt like something hit him in the head. A wave of nausea overcoming him. This was sickening him. The world was spinning and the goddess was practically laughing above him at his reaction to his fate. _

_ A favor? _

_ They returned to their rooms in a dreary silence. Fi had a smile plastered on her face, but her eyes were bloodshot and it simply made her look crazed. She probably was going crazy, he thought. This was ridiculous.  _

_ The world around them was so unforgiving. Nobody was outside of their houses today. Of course not. It was pouring down raining and the people who usually looked at him with concern because they knew what his father was doing to him only peered out the window with worried glances before returning to their world. _

_ How could people turn a blind eye to them now? _

_ “This is fine,” Fi said trying to lighten the mood. “It will be okay.” _

_ “No,” Ghirahim whispered breathless. He hadn’t been able to breathe right since the revelation. “No, I’m not okay with this Fi. This is not fine.” _

_ Her expression fell, “We can’t do anything about this.” _

_ “I will find a way.” _

_ Ghirahim didn’t realize that Fi was going to be in so much pain. It was night time when he first heard it. They had both gone asleep in their shared bedroom. A sudden shriek of pain woke him from his slumber and he scrambled to his younger sister’s side. She shook violently. Sweat was at her brow and she struggled to breathe. _

_ This. Wasn’t. Okay. _

_ It took three days to find the goddess again. Three days of listening to his sister scream in pain. It was too cruel. He wasn’t okay with it. Why was he not feeling any pain? _

_ “Why is she in pain?!” he yelled at Hylia. _

_ “Pain?” Hylia inquired. “Because a demon is trying to win control, that’s why.” _

_ “What?” Ghirahim sputtered. _

_ “Oh,” she murmured. “You didn’t hear the part where I said  _ Demon _ Sword?” _

_ Ghirahim wanted to punch her in the face for making light of this. His sister was hurting because of this.  _

_ “This is stupid!” he shouted. “You’re being irresponsible. You think this is some kind of joke?!” her smile faded. “You’ve been making our lives miserable and you’re failing your people. You’re going to let my father, Demise simply be sealed away for however many fucking years until your chosen hero arrives to save the world using us as weapons? You’re putting children to do your fucking bidding as pawns because you’re too pathetic to figure it out on your own?! Or is this simply because you’re bored and you have nothing better to do you shit goddess?!” _

_ It was too much to be fair. He shouldn’t have said everything, but she looked  _ through  _ him with an icy stare. _

_ “Then what would you have me do, since you seem to know everything, child?” _

_ “Take this back and figure it out on your own!” _

_ “Sorry,” it was insincere. “What is done is done. There’s no going back from this.” _

_ How irresponsible can a goddess be?! _

_ “Then, then,” Ghirahim was desperate. “Then make it my fate instead! Switch them!” _

_ She blinked several times, “Excuse me?” _

_ “I’ll be the demon blade!” he shouted with a broken voice. “Please… just don’t hurt her anymore. Three days of listening to her in agony…” _

_ It’s too much. _

_ “Fine,” it was too quick an answer. “I will switch your roles.”  _

_ It was obvious to him then that he had pissed her off. That his pain was going to be much worse.  _

_ It was. Ghirahim had no sleep. Fi slept soundly, something she hadn’t gotten in full since the torment started. He snarled and bit through his lip trying to keep the pain to a minimum. The taste of iron adding to the sickening feeling in his stomach.  _

_ It felt like someone was tearing him apart from the inside. A voice constantly in his head commanding him to give up. A voice all too familiar telling him that this was where he belonged. It was agonizing. He held his head, digging his nails into his skull begging to be left alone to sleep. Begging them to leave him in peace. _

_ Laughing. _

_ Laughing. _

_ It drove him mad. _

_ He got sleep. It was only because the pain made him pass out. He was unconscious most nights. Waking up in fits of agony that was ripping him to shreds. Too often, he was short of breath, clawing the sheets as if that would help him. Trying to regain his breath, the air was all around him, but for some reason his throat was too tight and nothing was going in. _

_ Fi only realized something was wrong because he never had the stomach to eat, and he was becoming too thin. She only realized something was wrong because the stress of the demon and the pain and just living was causing his hair to turn white.  _

_ He lied to her for three days after she noticed the change.  _

_ She found out the fourth day that he had gone to the goddess asking for their roles to be changed after Hylia told her, and she refused to switch them back. Hylia told her that the pain was twice as much as what she would have received. _

_ It was punishment she said. _

_ Fi hated it, but couldn’t do anything.  _

_ She was angry at him for going on his own and switching their roles without asking. She was angry at herself for taking so long to realize how his hair was getting paler and paler and how his complexion was growing greyer and greyer.  _

_ He was dying, Ghirahim realized. This was killing him. The demons were winning and were trying to separate his will, his soul, everything, from his body. Ghirahim’s fighting back was the reason why it hurt so much. If he didn’t resist as much, it wouldn’t hurt. _

_ But he wasn’t going down without a fight. _

_ Even if it killed him. _

Link gasped, sweat rolling down his face, Fi staring out into the beyond. His head throbbed. It felt like there was muted screaming in the back of his head. Cries for help out of agony. 

“He was too selfless for his own good.”

Link could only nod. Unable to speak, his throat impossibly tight from the nightmare, the memory, the pain. The feeling that he had almost died right then and there because Ghirahim had almost died. It was an all too familiar feeling, but this time, he didn’t switch to watching Ghirahim, it just continued, the pain, the shouting, the fight for life.

How did Ghirahim manage that? 

“You were—are strong,” Link murmured to him tired.

Ghirahim quirked an eyebrow, “I know, I don’t know why you’re bringing this up though, Skychild.”

“I have a name for one, it’s ‘Link’,” Link rolled his eyes. “And two, I know you know that. But I mean… those dreams—memories, you were so  _ strong _ . I don’t know if I could have done it.”

“Maybe.”

“You’re very different when the demons are gone,” Link mused.

“Not so much,” Ghirahim shrugged. “I’m more in control of what I say and do.”

Link laughed, “So you’re still as sadistic.”

“I’ve been called both a masochist and sadistic in my lifetime,” Ghirahim stood up. “I wouldn’t say it’s wrong. I’ve got it under wraps—I won’t kill you in your sleep.”

“You’ve nearly killed me a few times,” Link pointed out. “Are you the reason I’m not dead?”

“I won’t let the demons win,” Ghirahim gritted his teeth. “I don’t want Demise to win.”

“You two are bonding,” Fi stated calmly. “Master, the likelihood of Ghirahim killing you is 2.15%”

“Why is there still a number?” Link glared at Ghirahim.

“Remember, I never denied being sadistic.”

“Goddess.” 

But Link was at ease. He didn’t completely trust Ghirahim and he knew Ghirahim didn’t trust him completely either, but they could work together. For whatever reason, it was natural to talk to him, despite all the distance he was putting between them. Link watched as Ghirahim and Fi began talking. Speaking of the logistics of what they planned to do, Link prayed that this would work.

“When this is over, what will happen to you two?” Link asked during a lull.

That put the siblings to a still. They both exchanged glances before meeting Link’s gaze.

Fi spoke first, “It all depends on what the goddess has planned for us.”

“All of this started because of a damn prophecy,” Ghirahim scoffed. “So once the prophecy is fulfilled, the goddess will determine what she wants Fi to do.”

“What about you?” Link asked noticing he didn’t mention himself.

Ghirahim shrugged, “What about me?” He smirked, “I was castaway with the demons. I’m not really included in any future plans. I’m likely to go with Demise.”

“Absolutely not.”

Link didn’t realize he had said that as strongly as he did, but he wasn’t going to let Ghirahim go with the same man that ruined him—killed him once. That was cruel, that was torture and unfair. Link wasn’t going to let that happen.

“There has to be a way we can help you. Save you from that,” Link realized that it sounded more like he was pleading for Ghirahim to believe that. 

“I resigned to my fate long ago,” Ghirahim shrugged. “I’m already trying to fight against the goddess’s plans now. I think trying to fight out of my own confinement is pushing it skychild.”

Link balled his fists up tightly and he could feel his nails digging into his skin, almost drawing blood. Ghirahim couldn’t give in so easily, he had to keep fighting. Link knew he was tired, he could see it with the way he carried himself when he didn’t put on a front—when he was honest.

“You’re strong,” Link stated staring fiercely at him. “Ghirahim, you can’t _ not _ fight them. You fought against them because you didn’t want to end up like this, keep fighting.”

“What’s it to you?” Ghirahim asked angrily.

Link didn’t know what it was to him. He didn’t like seeing people hurt. Ghirahim was supposed to be his enemy, but he was becoming his friend and Link wanted to protect that. He wanted to protect Fi, who still loved her brother even if she couldn’t express it.

“You’re my friend,” and Ghirahim’s expression made Link wonder if Ghirahim had never been told that before. “You’re her brother. I can’t just let you go.”

“Friends?” Ghirahim spat. “You can’t go throwing that word around. It’ll lose its meaning.”

“I do consider you a friend,” Link murmured. “You don’t have to.” 

Ghirahim fell silent which was rare for him. He loved to talk. It was what he did best, but it was also his way of deflecting and right then, Link could tell he was at a loss. Link took it as a small victory and smiled at him, reassuringly.

“I don’t want to let you go without a fight,” Link leaned in closer. “Fi and I won’t let you go through this alone.”

Ghirahim glanced at Fi, before sighing and bidding farewell.

“I want what’s best for him,” Link said to her when he was sure he was gone. “I don’t know, those dreams… they—”

“The dreams are rather intimate,” Fi stated. “They go into very personal details. They’re meant to draw you to your soul bond.”

Link’s eyes wandered to the vast world beyond them. He cared more about him because of this bond. He feared what it would be like if he wasn’t bonded to him. Would he have just fought him not knowing of his painful past? Would he not have seen him as human as well and just tried to strike him down with no remorse? Would he have made Fi watch him as he struck down her brother in silence?

A chill went down his spine. That reality is too cruel.

-0-0-0-

Link loathed fighting Ghirahim. He knew somewhere down there, Ghirahim was fighting the demons off so Link didn’t have to fight him. Link looked at him, trapped in his own body, in pain. Link didn’t want to hurt him, but it was the only way he could do something.

But then Ghirahim regained himself on his own and Link had been midstrike when he saw Ghirahim’s eyes widen in shock and fear at the blade coming down on him and realized that he had escaped on his own. 

The blade dug into his shoulder and Link gasped as he let out a cry of pain. Link pulled the sword back and immediately be slinging a slew of apologies his way. Ghirahim hissed at him to shut up, that it didn’t matter because he regained himself on his  _ own _ . That was more important than an injured shoulder.

Link didn’t know if he could agree because he was currently bleeding out. Ghirahim rolled his eyes at Link’s fussing.

“I heal,” he said obviously indicating that Link needed to let it go. “If I didn’t we wouldn’t be having this many fights, skychild.” Link swallowed thickly and nodded. “I did it. You didn’t have to nearly kill me for me to actually return to myself.”

“That’s good,” Link sighed.

“Good?  _ Good _ ?” Ghirahim scoffed. “That’s all you could think of?”

Link groaned, “I’m sorry I’m more concerned about your arm falling off.”

Ghirahim rolled his eyes and Fi began conversing with him. Link watched silently. That was progress. Ghirahim regained control on his own, without Link having to inflict harm, even if he did at the end. He knew it must’ve been painful for Ghirahim, so he can only hope he doesn’t give up on him. 

“Hey, Ghirahim,” Link called softly one night. 

“Hmm?” he hummed staring into the night. “What is it, Skychild?”

“Do you see my memories?” Link didn’t know why he was nervous. There wasn’t anything particularly concerning about his past. Not like Ghirahim.

“Yes,” Ghirahim replied shortly. “I thought it was Hylia fucking with me again before you told me you were seeing mine.”

Link smiled albeit ruefully, “All the stories about Hylia seem so wrong when I see how she treated you guys.”

“Sometimes prophecies are more important than lives,” Ghirahim shrugged. He moved on before Link had a chance to object. “You had a nice childhood.”

“Yeah.”

“You were happy.”

“For the most part, yeah.”

“Your parents?” Ghirahim paused to let Link soak in what he was about to ask. “Do you still think about them?”

“I think about them because I want to know why they left me,” Link tried to hold back the sorrow and remain neutral but it was difficult. “I want to know why they didn’t want me.”

“I wondered that for a long time, Skychild,” Ghirahim replied truthfully. “I speculate as to if knowing why mine hated me so much has ruined me or bettered me. My mother left me with my father, maybe that was for the best.”

Link cleared his throat, “I don’t think you deserve anything that’s been done to you.”

Ghirahim snorted, “No one does—”

“ _ And _ , I think you deserve to be happy for once. After all of this is over.”

Ghirahim looked at Link for a long moment, “Say I am to survive this, how would I go about seeking happiness?”

“You could come back with me,” Link wondered if that sounded too hopeful and too out of place. “Fi will come too. I won’t let anything happen to you two.”

Ghirahim considered him for a long moment, before giving a wilted smile, “How sentimental of you, Skychild.”

“I mean it,” Link turned to face him fully. “I want to make you happy.”

The smile was wiped off of Ghirahim’s face, “I don’t know what happiness is like, Link. I don’t know if I ever have.”

Link’s heart broke a little more. Instead of replying to that, Link replied, “You said my name.”

Ghirahim nodded, “I did.” 

“You didn’t call me Skychild.”

“I didn’t,” Ghirahim confirmed. 

Link watched as Ghirahim’s arm healed. Silence overcame them, and eventually they sat down and just revelled in the realization that Ghirahim had fought the demons and won. Even if this was just a temporary reprieve. 

Fi gave them numbers, analytics about their next step. They tell them what Ghirahim needs to do and the logistics of it.

The chances are so low Link almost wanted to cry, but Ghirahim stood there ahead, ready for the worst to come. 

“Are you tired?” Ghirahim’s head spun around to look at Link. It was another fight. Ghirahim managed to fight the demons off but he looked so exhausted. Link didn’t think he could get any paler, any greyer, but here he was. “It’s getting worse isn’t it? It hurts doesn’t it?”

Link carefully sat himself next to Ghirahim who released a normal sigh, “I’m still trying to figure out why you care so much, Skychild. Just because you’ve seen how I’ve become this doesn’t mean you suddenly want anything to do with me.”

“I want to make this right,” Link murmured. “For you, for Fi. I care about you both. You’ve kept me alive this far for the prophecy. For us to win. I want to ensure that you get to see the future you’ve helped create.”

“Doesn’t mean much,” Ghirahim shrugged. “To see this future that I’ve almost helped ruin.”

Link hesitated, he reached out and knew instantly that Ghirahim wouldn’t want the contact. He hates the contact. It just reminds him of Demise but Link doesn’t want that to be the only thing he recalls of physical touch. That last loving touch was Fi, but he had made it obvious that it wasn’t the same because Hylia ruined them so much.

But when Link reached out, he flinched, but didn’t snap at him. He waited for Ghirahim to swat his hand away, he didn’t. So Link rested his hand awkwardly on the taller man’s shoulder and gave a wry smile, “You’re helping a lot. You’re sacrificing a lot. You’re helping save it more than ruin.”

Ghirahim didn’t bother responding and Link found this oddly comforting, despite the fact that they had gotten off to such a bad start. Despite the fact that they were once at each other’s throats.  

“You never answered my questions,” Link squeezed his shoulder lightly. “Is it getting worse? Are you tired?”

“Yes,” Ghirahim confessed. “To all of them, yes. But I won’t give up.”

“Do you think we will win?” 

“Maybe.”

Link didn’t like how unconvinced he was. But they had to hope, they had to.

“We will,” Link released his shoulder. “I won’t let us fail, I can’t.”

“You could,” Ghirahim shrugged. “I wouldn’t blame you if you decided not to help me.”

Link bit his lip, taken aback by Ghirahim’s admission. He remained silent, angry at the doubt Ghirahim still carried with him about Link’s motives and desires to help him. He stood up and glared at Ghirahim, but he made no attempt at eye contact, and walked away.

Damn him.

-0-0-0-

_ Ghirahim awoke in pain. So  _ **_much_ ** _ pain. It was worse than anything his father ever did to him. He struggled to get off of his cot. Grasping at the sheets trying to stabilize himself, but nothing was enough to actually get him to  _ **_sit up_ ** _. So he continued to lay there, staring at the ceiling as those voices banged at his brain. _

_ “Give in.” _

_ “It’s your fate.” _

_ “You have no hope.” _

_ “You  _ **_are_ ** _ us.” _

_ He wanted to bang his head against the wall. Maybe he would when Fi wasn’t around. Maybe that will numb the voices because pain was so normal.  _

_ His body was numb already, so he wouldn’t feel it. He tried to lift his hands up, that didn’t work. There was no feeling anywhere. He watched in the corner of his eyes as inhuman creatures continued to encircle him, mocking him, laughing at him. He could only stare blankly.  _

_ There wasn’t much more he could do, or at least felt like doing. Perhaps shutting his eyes would ease the pain, he considered.  _

_ So he did so. _

_ And every once in a while there was a pleasant voice, soothing him, telling him to be strong, that it would be okay. It was too masculine to be his sister or Hylia, yet too young to be whatt Demise used to be _ — _ a father. And also too foreign. _

_ He had never heard this voice before. _

_ They would tell him that they would meet soon. _

_ What was soon? _

_ Ghirahim had lost track of all time. _

_ In reality, he was not sure how long he just laid there in bed. He had lost count of the number of times Fi had walked into the room carrying food, propped him up on a pillow and fed him because he couldn’t manage to do it himself. He could barely make a fist most days. He could barely open his eyes most seconds. He slept for hours, maybe days, until Fi woke him up to feed him. _

_ She was turning blue he noted. Her face was becoming less and less detailed. _

_ That’s odd. She was looking more like a statue. A beautiful sculpture. _

_ Then it hit, delayed, and he was angry it took him so long to register what was happening to his baby sister. _

_ Hylia’s curse was taking effect on her now. Did she know, he wondered. Was she aware that she was turning blue, her hair didn’t flow like it used to, her eyes were losing color, losing their individuality, turning into blank slates. _

_ Did she realize that her voices of concerns held little inflection and she sounded more like she was ordering him around and like his conditions was nothing more than reporting the weather? _

_ What kind of cruel joke was this to Hylia? _

_ The voices always got louder whenever he thought about her. Whether in favor _ — _ which was rare _ — _ or in anger, they shouted over this thoughts, and he wasn't sure how often he had screamed out in frustration, agony, for Fi to walk in trying to help, but the gestures seemed empty when her expression was just as blank. _

_ This was torture. _

_ Ghirahim wasn’t quite sure when he managed to finally,  _ **_finally_ ** _ , sit up. It was agony. Ghirahim was praying to some god, it wasn’t Hylia, gods knew that, but he was praying to someone that they would same him. _

_ Maybe that voice would bring him out of his misery. _

_ But it never came and his pallor became greyer and greyer, he became thinner and thinner, angrier and angrier. _

_ His hair was white. _

_ His skin was grey. _

_ He was becoming a demon. _

_ Just like they said he would. _

_ Where was his savior? _

—————————————————————————

“You know,” Zelda sits down across from Link. “I’m planning on going back to the surface. I want to… I want to build a civilization there.”

Link looks at her wearily, “Yeah?” 

Zelda nodded with so much enthusiasm, it made Link feel dizzy. Beside him, Fi smiles at Zelda with an eagerness he hasn’t seen in two weeks. 

“Really? You will?” Fi asks. “We should help Link. It’ll take our minds off things.”

“...Right,” Link whispers. It’s true, he is still stuck on Ghirahim. He is always concerned for him. Worry that Faron may not be able to heal Ghirahim at all—or maybe she will be able to, but he won’t quite be the same. Maybe, he won’t even remember who they are.

Zelda sighs softly, “Has anything changed?”

Fi replies for Link and he silently thanks her, “No… Unfortunately, everything is the same.”

“I’ve been thinking… Of what you both told me about yours and Ghirahim’s past,” Zelda stands up. “Would the goddess really do that? Could she really destine two children to such a cruel fate? I’m her reincarnation, so what does that mean?”

The thought of Zelda being her reincarnation stings. He can’t believe that to be true because despite her bias towards Ghirahim, she hasn’t insisted that Link let him die. She doesn’t really press the issue beyond wanting to know more about him. 

“You will be better than her,” Fi answers firmly. “You won’t do to others what she did to my brother and I.”

Link can only nod and stare at Zelda as a look of wilting determination crosses her face. In truth, Link wonders what the interactions between Ghirahim and Zelda will be like considering all that has transpired.

If Ghirahim survives, that is. 

Link’s stomach curls at the idea of Ghirahim succumbing to this. After all the fighting he’s done, the man he was so determined to take down and laugh at him after it was almost over tried to take him down too.

He has to survive, he has to.

“Do you want to go visit him?” Zelda asks softly noting his expression. “I’m sure he would like it if you did. It’s been almost two weeks now.”

_ Yes _ , he acknowledges. Two weeks of him trying to avoid the lack of progress Ghirahim was making because he was just so tired.

_ “What’s wrong?” _ Link had asked. Ghirahim gave him a withering smile and he could see the deep bags under his eyes. “ _ Ghirahim _ .” Link stressed placing his hand on top of his. “ _ Please, are you hurting? In pain? Talk to me. What can I do to help? _ ”

Ghirahim leaned into Link, “ _ I’m just  _ **_so_ ** _ tired, Link. So tired.”  _ He paused for a brief moment looking at Link. “ _ Sometimes I wonder if I can do this. Sometimes I wonder if I should _ —”

“ _ You can _ !” Link breathed. “Goddess,  _ you can.” _ Ghirahim’s words carried so much weight. “ _ Please don’t give up. _ ”

“ _ I’m trying _ ,” Ghirahim hid his face from Link’s view. “ _ I’m just so tired _ .”

Link wishes he could have done more for him. Wishes he could have been stronger so Ghirahim didn’t have to shoulder so much pain. 

“He would want you to,” Zelda continues. “Go, we haven’t started much, I can handle this.”

Link nods and looks to Fi. They make their trek back to Ghirahim. It feels long. He dreads it the closer he gets because he’s just afraid of what his condition may be. He’s afraid that Ghirahim may be dead and he would find out in the worst of ways.

What if Faron decided to kill him?

Link walks into her lake meekly. She sighs at Link’s presence as if he’s a child walking late to class. And maybe he is.

“You have returned, chosen hero,” Faron welcomes him. “Good.”

“How is he?” Link asks softly.

“Recovering,” Faron remarks. “Slowly, but he is. He’s gained some strength, the sword is now longer in shards, but how he moves forward—if he can regain his human form is up in the air.”

Link walks over to the sword. He gently runs his fingers over it and then begins to speak absently, “I miss you.” Link sighs, “I hope we can talk again. I have so much I want to say and show you.” He pauses for a long moment as another ring sounds in his ears. It’s more consistent, louder, stronger, Link feels renewed confidence. “I need you… I really do.”

———————————————————--

Link knew that he wasn’t supposed to be listening in on that conversation. He knew that they thought he was asleep. They sounded so serious. Fi sounded agitated. Ghirahim sounded angry.

“Fi,  _ listen _ to me. I’m his puppet. I do his bidding. He will know regardless of anything if I am against him or not. He’s our father for fuck’s sake,” Link flinched at his tone. “I can lure him into a trap, you and Link can take him down, take Zelda and go. That’s the long way, that’s the safe way. If I just revert everything I’ve done, this can still work. I’m a demon, I can trap him in there, weaken him—” 

“You’ll die,” Fi replied firmly. “Do anything against his will and he’ll kill you. If not him, then Hylia.”

Ghirahim was trying to sacrifice himself and Link wasn’t going to have it.

“What the hell are you talking about?” Link asked glaring at the two. “What’s this about you dying?”

Ghirahim clamped his mouth shut, shot daggers at Fi, “You said he was asleep.”

“He was when this conversation started,” Fi bit back. “Perhaps we need him for you to gain some common sense. I’m not letting you die.”

Fi sounded so human, so normal. It was almost as if they were their normal selves again.

“Ghirahim, I’m not letting you get hurt,” Link stared at him. “Not if I can do something to prevent it.”

“There’s nothing to be done!” Ghirahim rubbed his eyes. “This will stop you from endangering yourself. Demise and I have the same composition—demons. Angering the demons inside of me will give me enough power to separate Fi from the master sword and infuse myself with the sword and shatter what’s left of demise.” He glanced back at Fi, “And she’ll go back to being human.”

“Ghirahim,” Link looked at him pained. “Please, we’ve worked hard for this. Losing you is not an option.”

“It can be,” Ghirahim said it wasn’t angry, it was just defeated. “Link I just… Fi… I just want this to be done. I’m  _ tired _ .”

Link’s heart, he’s pretty sure, broke into a million pieces right at that second. 

“Ghirahim, you can’t…” Link blinked rapidly. “I know you are, you’ve been for so long, but… You can’t  _ give up _ . Not like this. We’re fighting against Demise so you can live the life the way you want—”

“I’ve been trying to do that for years!” Ghirahim’s voice was wet, broken, angry and sad all at the same time. “You’ve seen it Link! You’ve seen everything I’ve been through. You’ve seen me fight—”

“I haven’t seen you fight him once!” Link knew that was the wrong thing to say, but it was true. None of those memories have shown the fight in Ghirahim. He'd only seen the Ghirahim that was broken and almost lifeless. Fought Hylia, not his father. “The ones I’ve seen you took every hit, every beating, every violation without so much as a blink.”

Ghirahim winced, “I suppose the bonds are selective about what they show us. They just showed you what I was like after being beaten into submission for over half of my life.”

Fi flinched and avoided Ghirahim’s eyes. He knew she felt guilty about everything that happened to Ghirahim. He knew that a part of her will always blame herself for what he had to endure. These two innocent kids hurt, tortured, emotionally and physically within an inch of their lives and sanity.

“I just wanted to be free,” Ghirahim muttered bitterly. “I still do.”

There was a wave of dizziness that hit him. Link placed a hand on his forehead, blinked a few times but the black dots in his vision grew until he couldn’t see a thing. 

_ “Fi,” Ghirahim wheezed. “I can’t keep doing this.” _

_ “Brother, don’t say that!” Fi pleaded. “You have to keep going. Please keep going.” _

_ Ghirahim gave her a weak smile, “I’m just so sick of this life. If I ended things... “ _

_ Fi’s eyes widened, tears in her eyes as Ghirahim’s words reached her ears. He knew it was wrong of him to say that. It was selfish to want to go. He would leave her with the demon and there was no way in hell he was going to take her with him. She deserved a full happy life. _

_ Maybe he would be able to get her to the next village. There was a secret caravan that traveled through the woods. Nobody knew much about it except that they occasionally pass through with produce and goods from foreign lands. Maybe they would take Fi with them. It would be easier to get one out than both. He would return to the house after he secured her passage with enough rupees, his whole life savings because he wouldn’t need it, plus some. Then, before Demise could get to him, he’d end it all.  _

_ How would he do it? _

_ There were plenty of sharp objects. _

_ There was plenty of medicine in the cabinets. _

_ Alcohol was there too, that’s always a deadly combination. _

_ Then, there’s that really tall building _ —

_ “Brother, you need to snap out of it!” Fi was over top of him like Demise was when he _ —

_ “Wake up! Snap out of it!” Fi was crying again. He always hated that.  _

_ But eternal sleep just seemed so appealing. _

“—ink!” he could vaguely hear someone calling out for him. He opened his eyes to find himself staring into the night sky. Link looked to his sides to find Ghirahim and Fi hovering over him.

“Master?” Fi’s voice was laced with worry. That was unusual.

“Ghirahim,” Link paused when Ghirahim’s eyes widened. “What?”

“Why are you crying, Skychild?” Ghirahim asked. “What happened? Are you in pain?”

Link hadn’t noticed he was. He supposed that after what he saw, it hit him pretty hard. 

Link noticed quite a few things delayed. He was laying on his back. Ghirahim was  _ concerned _ for  _ him _ . And that his head was still throbbing, a dull ache building up in the rest of his body. He must’ve collapsed. 

“Did you ever try it?” Link whispered.

“What?” Ghirahim continued to look at him in confusion. 

Link swallowed before speaking again, “You seemed like you wanted things to end before. Did you ever try it?”

“Goddess, did you experience a memory just like that?” Ghirahim looked at him shocked and then switched his gaze to Fi. He pulled his hands away from Link’s shoulders.

“Strong bonds,” Fi supplied. “Especially when the partner is distressed, sometimes the bond delivers a memory to the other party in hopes that it’ll help quell the soul bonds and protect both parties.”

Ghirahim’s gaze switched back to Link, “How strong a bond?”

Fi didn’t reply, but Ghirahim swallowed and nodded when he noticed her silence. Link really wished he understood their silent conversations.

“We’ll get back to the bonds,” Link cut in. “Did you try?”

Ghirahim stood up in silence and walked away, “Twice. Obviously, I failed.”

Link muttered a small “fuck” under his breath as he slowly sat up himself, “I’m not letting you throw your life away.”

“I get it.”

“We’re friends. You’re her brother.”

“I got it, Skychild.”

“I care about you.”

Ghirahim spun around to face him, “I’ve grasped the concept, Skychild! I won’t throw my life away. Leave me be!”

“Then why is this bond screaming at me! It hurts my head,” Link didn’t know how he knew it was the soul bond. He didn’t know how he knew that that was the reason for his painful migraines, but putting two and two together—Ghirahim’s distress and desire to end everything—was sign enough.

“You can… you can feel that?” Ghirahim looked panicked now. Link nodded. “Shit…”

Fi floated to Link’s side, “It’s obvious that this bond is more serious than we originally thought it to be. I suggest you talk this out soon.”

Ghirahim faded quickly.

“I’m confused,” Link admitted after silence trying to figure out why Ghirahim wanted to leave so quickly.

“Soul bonds strengths are based on fated destinies, emotions, feelings and affections,” Fi explained. “The fact that you feel everything he feels so intimately suggests you have a strong emotional bond.” Fi paused as Link let that soak in nodding ever so slowly. “I know you trust him, but this goes beyond trust. Do you love my brother?”

Link never responded. 

It took Link a long time to admit to himself that his concern for Ghirahim’s safety whenever he was away was beyond friendship. It took even longer for Link to name the emotion—the affection he felt for the man when they saw each other. How his heart soared when he managed to make Ghirahim laugh softly, even a low chuckled was something—anything with pure emotions in it. 

When Ghirahim broke down because it was too much, Link made sure to be there. When Link felt like he wasn’t strong enough, Ghirahim never pushed him away for being clingy. He still felt the low thrums of distress in the bond, but Link knew that Ghirahim was trying to mute it so Link didn’t hear his inner turmoil. It felt invasive yet strangely intimate to be bonded to someone. It’s true, not all those who are bonded are fated to be lovers, some are just friend bonds, but sometimes the bonds grew with the feelings of the bearer.

Link wondered if Ghirahim felt anything back. 

Ghirahim seated himself beside Link a few nights later. They had fought again. Ghirahim had lost control against the demons, he was tired, Link could see it. He was just glad that Ghirahim was still fighting and didn’t feel like he couldn’t go back. 

“I feel like we need to clear the air,” Ghirahim began and Link nearly choked. Was he going to talk about the bonds? Link wasn’t really prepared for that conversation. There was still a lot he needed to sort out and— “Hylia was corrupted.”

Oh.  _ Oh _ . Link wasn’t expecting that to be the topic of conversation. He bit back the slight disappointment he felt. It was overwhelmed by the relief he felt with it as well.

“What do you mean?” Link hoped he sounded casual.

“I know, in my memories and the way I’ve spoken about her, Hylia has been shown as anything but benevolent. She was cruel, sadistic—I know it’s tainted your view of her.” 

Link simply nodded. There would always be a part of him who was angry at Hylia for what she did to these two siblings. 

Ghirahim sighed, “She wasn’t always like that. She was corrupted, I’m assuming by demons but I don’t know the details.” Link’s eyes widened and his head snapped to Ghirahim giving him his full attention. “I don’t know how it happened, but this is bigger than us—than Demise. I realized it during the time when the demons were converting me to their minion. They kept talking about how successful they were. How this was going to be their domain… I was in too much pain to really comprehend what they were telling me, but it’s true. The Hylia  _ I _ know, isn’t the Hylia the  _ people _ know. It isn’t the true Hylia.”

“She let this happen then? Because the demons wanted this to happen?” Link asked in shock. His voice wasn’t much above a whisper. He couldn’t really muster much more than that.

“Yes, the corrupted Hylia let this happen,” Ghirahim answered. “It’s a lot, I know. But I don’t want you to hate her. I don’t hate her. Not as much as I used to. I hate the demons inside me, inside her, inside my father. They’ve ruined my life. I don’t quite know how to fix it.”

“How did this happen?” Link asked softly.

“It’s beyond us,” Ghirahim looked up towards the night sky. “A secret war between the gods and the demons. The demons have won the battle and are trying to take over our plane of existence.”

Link didn’t know what to say. He didn’t know this was a thing. In truth, Link didn’t even know that the demons had such a large effect on his life before Ghirahim and Demise. Knowing that they’ve corrupted their goddess and that this was a secret plan on the demons all along and not Hylia then…

“Have we been set up for failure all this time?” Link gasped staring at the sky as well.

“Perhaps,” Ghirahim shrugged. “I wouldn’t know, but I can’t let them win. Which is why I think that I can use my body as a vessel for all the demons and you can use your sword to kill me—”

“I’m not going to kill you,” Link snapped. “I’ve told you this. I’m  _ not _ going to kill you!” 

“I know, I know,” Ghirahim placated, but he sounded so sad. “I know, Link, I’m sorry.”

Link glared at Ghirahim, “Do you?” Ghirahim only nodded and Link’s expression softened. He gripped Ghirahim’s hand giving it a gentle squeeze, “Okay, okay. There has to be another way. I’m not losing you—”

“No one’s held my hand like this in a long time,” Ghirahim stared at their hands. 

“Do you not like it?”

“I would’ve pulled my hand away if that was the case.” 

Link allowed himself a soft smile. 

“We have to save Hylia,” Ghirahim whispered gently. “If we want to save this world, we have to save Hylia and stop all of the demons.”

“I’ll only do it if you’re by my side,” Link confessed. “I think I can only do it if you’re there.”

“You’d be fine without me.”

That was such a huge lie. Link was always worried about Ghirahim. When he wasn’t by his side, Link always looked to the soul bond to see how he was. It was usually negative thoughts, but it was enough to let Link know that he was okay. A part of him feels like it’s a breach of privacy, using the soul bond like this. Another part of him feels like if he didn’t do this, he would never know how Ghirahim was feeling.

For the most part, Ghirahim dropped by at least every other night. He always came by after a fight with Link. Link felt guilty for hurting him. Ghirahim would tell him he was used to it, he didn’t have to apologize.

The Hero isn’t sure how many times he has to tell Ghirahim that it was not okay that he was used to being hurt, and nothing about Link hurting him was okay. Ghirahim would shrug it off, he wasn’t quite sure if that was because he didn’t know how to reply, or if he just didn’t believe him, but Link took his silence in strides. It was something he was used to. Having one sided conversations with him and sometimes Ghirahim would pop in to say something witty.

Ghirahim being silent was something he thought was odd when he first met him. When he first met Ghirahim, when the demons had full control, he loved to talk and maybe a younger, happier version of Ghirahim loved to talk as well.

But Link had only seen him depressed, dejected and hurt. In all the memories, Ghirahim was a solemn young man. Maybe the demons play out on the other side of Ghirahim. 

Link wished he could see a happier side of Ghirahim more. Maybe after everything was over, after Demise was defeated, after they freed Hylia, after they ended this was with the demons, maybe Link would be able to put a smile on that face again. Maybe he would laugh again.

A dream, really. Who knew if Ghirahim would want anything to do with him after all this was over.

That’s a fear of Link. After all of this was over, if— _ when _ they managed to free Ghirahim and Fi from their fates if Ghirahim would stick with him. He knew that Zelda would oppose. He knew that Groose would oppose, though, in truth, he didn’t really care what Groose wanted. Fi would be welcomed with open arms because she helped Link. She was chosen by the goddess to do so. But Ghirahim was possessed by demons to fight them, and despite defying his fate, people would still shun him. If Zelda shunned him, if Gaepora shunned him, then everyone would. The people may not physically hurt him, but the emotional hurt was already too much. 

If Ghirahim would have him, he would go with Ghirahim wherever he wanted to go. 

“You think too loudly, Skychild,” Link heard from behind him.

“S-sorry,” Link felt the heat creeping up to his ears. Did that mean Ghirahim knew…? “How much can you hear through the bonds?”

Ghirahim shrugged, “Not much. It’s like a loud static whenever you’re thinking really hard about something.”

Link sighed with relief receiving an odd look from Ghirahim, “Sorry, I’ll work on it.” Ghirahim simply nodded. Link knew that Ghirahim was waiting for him to talk about what was causing so much noise in the bond. Quickly, Link spat out the first thing to come to mind, “I was worried about Zelda.”

Ghirahim’s face remained carefully blank, “I’m sure she is well.” 

“Yeah?” Link questioned. “Every time I get near her something happens. Whether it’s you or someone else, I haven’t been able to speak to her.”

“You will,” came the simple reply. “She is the reincarnation of Hylia after all.”

Link blinked several times. Open and closed his mouth and he was just so lost.

“She’s  _ what _ ?” 

“Did you not know?” Ghirahim asked innocently. “Yes, your childhood friend, Zelda, is the reincarnation of Hylia.”

Link sputtered, seemingly forgetting how to form words. It took him a long moment to recover. He didn’t  _ know _ that. He wished he did. Goddess, that changes a lot of things.

“Will that mean… that she is corrupted by demons too?” Link immediately asked when he regathered herself.

Ghirahim shook his head, “Hylia and the Corrupted Hylia are two different beings. Like me, sometimes she was in control and sometimes she wasn’t. Fi was converted into a spirit like herself for the sole purpose of helping you in your journey. Hylia also knew that she was losing the battle with the demons and ensured that her soul would transfer to the body of a mortal in order to win against Demise—there’s a lot about this lore that you don’t know about huh?”

“I know the classic stories,” Link confessed. “I was told that Demise was the Demon King, but I guess that’s not true because of your past… right?”

Ghirahim shrugged, “Demise was sealed temporarily by the goddess. He struck up his revenge plans before Hylia knew it and weakened her, corrupted her and had slowly planned on making his way back to the surface.” He took a deep breath, “My father  _ is _ Demise, the Demon King, but there was before the Demon King’s soul returned and after. That’s how I explain my life. It’s true, Fi and I are children of the Demon King, but my mother’s soul was pure, and Fi got more of that than I did I suppose.”

“Weren’t you originally supposed to be guiding me?” Link inquired.

“Yes,” Ghirahim admitted. “I was. I wonder sometimes how that would have changed things. I needed Fi to survive, she would handle things better than I would, so I switched out fates. Sometimes I wonder if the demons anticipated me wanting to switch fates and purposefully chose the way they did.” He shrugged again, “What’s done is done. We just have to win.”

Link only nodded.

Everything was confusing.

When he ran across Zelda again, this time at the Gate of Time, Link rejoiced. It had been so long.  _ So _ long since he had seen her and Link was growing desperate in finding her. He didn’t know if the demons had gotten to her or if she was safe with Impa but the latter was true and Link couldn’t be more thrilled.

She smiled. They hugged. They almost cried.

But then—

But then it was short lived when Ghirahim showed up. Ruined everything. It wasn’t his fault—Link knew that but  _ still _ . It hurt when he tried to kidnap Zelda, and her eyes widened in fear as she fled into the Gate of Time. It hurt when everytime he tried to find her  _ something _ happened that prevented them from truly reuniting. 

This time it was Ghirahim.

“How could you?” Link’s voice was raw as he asked this question. It was an unfair question. It wasn’t him. It wasn’t him. It wasn’t him. And Link hates how much that has to become a mantra for him to believe it because sometimes it gets so hard and Link can only remember when he didn’t know a damn thing about Ghirahim or his past and just sees the villain, the  _ demon lord _ trying to take everything away from him.

As per usual, when Link asked that question, he remained silent. Link hated that more. His silence. Why didn’t he speak? Why didn’t he try to defend himself? 

Why, why, why? That seemed like all Link could muster. It took him nights to actually decide to speak to him again. He didn’t want this. He didn’t want this at all. The hero hated being angry. He hated blaming Ghirahim. He hated fate, and the demons, and the gods, and their wars, and dragging him into this, and making him a hero when he didn’t want to be, and—

Link stopped when he noticed Ghirahim clutch his head. The feed in the soul bond was loud again. Right. He forgot he had to manage that. A part of him wanted Ghirahim to feel pain, to feel  _ his _ pain. Then, he can’t imagine what it would be like for him, consciously aware of the fact that he had hurt people and took things away from people and—

“Link, by the goddess,  _ stop _ !” Ghirahim exclaimed. “I’m sorry.  _ Please _ .”

So he  _ could  _ make it hurt. He could overwhelm him.

Link silenced his thoughts, walked away and just collapsed to the ground. He wanted everything to just  _ stop _ . He never asked for this. Who would want this? Groose maybe but he wouldn’t wish this on anyone. He wouldn’t force this pressure on anyone. It was crippling. 

This so-called chosen hero tried hard not to dwell on this. Tried hard not to dwell on the life chosen for him and all the obstacles he never wanted to face. He wanted the simple life. Thought he’d marry, someone, anyone—he knew it wouldn’t be Zelda. They were friends, but they could never breach that gap. They knew too much of one another, they clash enough as friends.

He didn’t think he’d be fated to love his enemy. 

He was just so filled with  _ anger _ . Negative emotions not fit for the hero.

“Master,” Fi called out. “You are distressed.”

“Yes,” Link snapped. “Brilliant observation Fi.” Immediately after he said that, he felt bad. Fi didn’t deserve his anger.

She remained undeterred, “They are safe. Ghirahim has left.”

“With the migraine?”

“Yes,” Fi replied. “The one you were feeding him through the soul bonds.”

Link should feel more guilt than he does, but he was just so tired... 

_ He didn’t recognize himself anymore. He was tired, the bags under his eyes were impossibly deep and dark. Complexion grey as if dead, face gaunt as if ill _ — _ he looked almost like a walking dead man, a zombie. He might as well be.  _

_ Ghirahim collapsed to the hard wood floor as his legs gave in on him. He didn’t feel it. Everything was numb. That was a familiar feeling now though. Every sensation vaguely there. Ghirahim groaned again. He hadn’t seen Fi in several days. He wondered if she gave up on him. Not that he could blame her. He was being difficult and didn’t have the strength to really sustain himself. _

_ He hadn’t really made contact with anyone since things had gotten this bad. The first few days, after laying awake in bed for several hours he was able to move again and managed to carry out his daily routine. Take care of the garden. Fetch the water. Run to the market. Make dinner. _

_ It was easier to carry out the routine for the first week. Then people started asking questions because his limp grew worse, his skin grew pasty pale till it slowly subsided to grey. His hair was turning white. He began to sneer at the people who used to help him and ended up pushing them away. _

_ He was beginning to hate himself. This wasn’t fair, it wasn’t fair, it wasn’t fair.  _

_ He hated his life.  _

_ Eventually, Fi stopped letting him make breakfast because of the way he stared at the knives and forks. It was a way out. A cowardly way out, but a way out.  _

_ So she forbade him from going into the kitchen. He decided he would find another way. He made his way to the tallest building in the village. It was tall enough that a fall from there would kill him instantly. That’s what he wanted. That’s what he needed. He left the note for Fi. Apologized to her. Told her that she was strong and he was forever weak.  _

_ 5. _

_ 4. _

_ He started hearing people shouting at him. Some telling him to get down. Some asking what the hell he was thinking. Others were covering the eyes of their children and telling them to get back inside.  _

_ 3. _

_ 2. _

_ People started climbing up trying to reach him time. Trying to stop him from taking the leap.  _

_ 1. _

_ As he jumped, he saw two familiar faces. The stricken horror on a young girl’s face who looking bluer than usual. One who appeared to almost be floating.  _

_ Then another in the shadows with a garish smile on his face that made his stomach plummet and an irrational fear creep in. _

_ This would work. This would work. Why was he having so much trouble to believing that _ —

_ The last things he heard before everything went black were the screams of the betrayed and the terror. _

Link was screaming. He felt boneless, broken, hurt,  _ terrified _ . Goddess, goddess, goddess. Fuck. Shit. Everything  _ ached _ . Did he fall? Did he just—

“Master, what is it?” Fi appeared before him checking him out for injuries. “Master, what is causing your distress?”

“I just… I just,” Link couldn’t form a coherent sentence. The words were garbled up in his mouth. Nothing was working. His head was  _ throbbing _ . Then, he wondered if Ghirahim felt any of what he was feeling. And, well, served him right because he was the reason Link is in this pain. 

“Master?” Fi cocked her head to the side. “Was it a nightmare?”

“Yeah,” Link breathed. “I saw him jump.”

She didn’t need to be told who. She fell silent. Floated before him for a long while saying nothing. Link instantly felt guilty because she was there.

“I couldn’t do anything,” Fi supplied matter-of-factly. “I watched him jump and I thought it was over.”

Link ran a hand over his face and made his way to the lake to wake himself up. 

“His body looked like a rag-doll,” Fi continued. “My world stopped. He promised me we would get through it together and he tried to leave me.” Her tone is cool and calculated. There’s no emotion and Link’s heart aches more for that. “But then his body began mending back together and that’s when everyone started calling him a demon.” Link sucked in a sharp breath. “He didn’t leave his room after that.”

“Being called a demon really got to him?” Link asked staring into the lake.

“Yes.”

Link bit the inside of his cheek. He wasn't so sure if he wanted his next question answered, but he went for it anyway, “What happened after?”

Fi looked beyond Link. Reliving the memories. Reliving the pain. 

“They treated him like a demon,” she started. “When they saw him recover, saw him open his eyes again gasping for air, they screamed and ran. I thought that was it, I didn’t think they would do anything else.” Link clenched his eyes tightly. “They saw me and thought me some divine messenger, none of them recognized me at that point. They saw me watch him fall and assumed that I was there to tell them to cast the goddess’s judgement on him.” His migraine grew worse.

_ They chained him up to a pole. They whipped him till he bled out and came back again. They starved him watched him grow thin but never die. _

_ Fi snuck him food some nights. _

_ He was passive. Never fighting them. _

_ They burned him. Drowned him. Tortured him. Killed him. _

_ The villagers were more demons than Ghirahim ever was.  _

_ The towering figure of Demise lingered in the shadows. His grin still plastered there urging them to continue. It was a wonder if he was controlling all of them. If this was his attempt at beating Ghirahim into submission to help him defeat Hylia for once and for all.  _

_ Ghirahim grew so thin that the chains no longer fit his wrist. He slipped away. Hid in the forest. Fi watched him go and followed. She nursed him back.  _

_ He found a knife and plunged it through his heart. The horror realizing he couldn’t die truly sunk in. He sobbed a broken sound in the forest.  _

_ Ghirahim prayed to a goddess he didn’t believe in anymore for a reprieve, for death. _

_ It never came. _

_ “It’ll be okay.” _

_ “Who are you?” _

_ “I’m always here for you.” _

_ “Where are you?” _

_ “Soon.” _

_ Ghirahim didn’t know what soon was. Soon, he was plunged into the shadows as Hylia banished him and Demise. Fi said a fading goodbye, looking down at him impassively, succumbing to her role as the spirit to the goddess sword. _

“Master!” Fi raised her voice. “Please respond.”

Link’s eyes jolted open with a start. Another memory. It felt so out of body. It was weird, but Link appreciated those more than when he experienced everything firsthand. Those hurt. He didn’t want to experience dying so many times, over and over and over again.

“Master,” Fi repeated with more urgency.

“I’m here,” Link croaked and rubbed his eyes with the heel of his hand. “I’m here. I just… Had another flashback.”

Fi looked behind her, “You two must discuss this. It is growing dangerous.”

Blue eyes met those dark, mysterious eyes and Link winced. Ghirahim didn’t move. He stared at Link, expression unreadable. 

Ghirahim asked the unthinkable, “Is there anyway to sever the bond?”

———————————————————-

“I didn’t know all that,” Zelda murmurs sadly. “I didn’t know that about him.”

Link huffs a soft breath trying to even out his breathing. In. Out. In. Out. Talking about Ghirahim and everything he experienced is hard, but he has been bottling it up for a long time because he never knew how much he could talk about with him. While he doesn’t disclose everything to Zelda, it’s enough to get his point across.

Ghirahim is as much of a victim as all of them.

“And there’s still a war to be fought,” Zelda stares into the sky. “Between the gods and demons?”

Link nods, “Yeah. Something way bigger than us.”

“Yet somehow we all got pulled into it,” her eyes fall to the land before her. “Us mortals. Hylia has high standards for us.”

Link can’t agree more. He doesn’t want to fight anyone else’s battles—not anymore. He’s tired. He wants to rest. Maybe when he knows for sure that Ghirahim will wake up and recover completely he’ll consider it. Despite what the goddess may need, he needs to take time for himself or he may very well go insane. 

“You have time Link,” Zelda reads his mind. “Hylia would want you to rest. Ghirahim would too.” The hero winces slightly at Ghirahim’s name but allows himself a small smile. “They know that you can’t run yourself into the ground. Even if we’re at the end game—where Ghirahim truly wanted us to go to—he wouldn’t want you to push yourself.” She gives him a reassuring smile, “Breathe. Visit him when you want—I understand. I understand, a little more, why you love him.”

That makes Link’s day. A sheepish smile creeps onto Link’s face, “Love… I guess love is a strong word right now. I don’t know if he feels the same but—”

“There’s no doubt in my mind that he reciprocates,” Zelda replies firmly. “Don’t go doubting it. And if he doesn’t he’ll have to fight me.”

Link laughs, a real laugh. Something he hasn’t released in so long. Zelda eventually joins in and then Fi shows up to see the commotion. Getting a good look at her now, Link can see that she’s changing ever so slightly. Gaining emotions, smiling, expressions, it’s a good start. She hasn’t made any changes to her form. She still floats, she’s still blue, she’s still inhumanely elegant, but she’s more human now than before.

It’s a wonder if the goddess is keeping her this way until they solve the issues with the demons.

Fi speaks to him in a hesitant tone, “May we check on my brother?” 

“Of course,” Link agrees easily. “I’ve been wanting to check on him myself. Zelda, would you like to come?”

There’s a slight shock that takes over Zelda’s face. She clutches the harp at her side a little tighter. She mutters a few words to herself and nods.

“It can’t hurt,” she looks back up at Link. “Perhaps it’ll prepare me to speak to him face to face when he’s up and running again.”

Link smirks and gives her a thumbs up. 

He watches her step hesitantly to the healing blade. Her movements slow and hesitant. Her apology genuine and the water in her eyes threatening to fall. Regret. Pain. Link hadn’t realized that his story resonating so much with her.

“I’m sorry you went through so much,” Zelda bows before Ghirahim apologetically. “I hope you can live the happy life you wanted with Link soon. He misses you.” 

The sword chimes almost immediately after. Link wonders if Ghirahim can hear them.

———————————————————--

“Breaking the bond could potentially kill you both,” Fi explained with a hint of exhaustion. “You know that. I’ve said that.”

“Well, it’s not doing us any good now,” Ghirahim spat. Link simply stared wide eyed at the bickering duo. He had gone about this wrong. He knew he had. He had lashed out too many times at Ghirahim,  but then Ghirahim said it was justified .

Link had put up with all the pain of Ghirahim’s nightmares,  but then Ghirahim said that he didn’t deserve it .

“Guys, no, it’s fine,” Link knew that his voice didn’t carry. 

Ghirahim and Fi still looked at him. Ghirahim’s eyes alight with agitation and hatred, and a part of Link was curious as to if that was directed to Link or himself. 

The latter most likely. 

“Master,” Fi began. “I beg to differ, the intensity of the bond causes you to lose consciousness as soon as something triggers a memory. We need to take action.” She turns to Ghirahim, “Just not his actions.”

“What would you have us do, then?” seeing Ghirahim being so aggressive towards Fi was odd to Link. He wasn’t used to that. Ghirahim was always gentle with her in his memories. 

The demons. 

“Talk,” Fi replied simply. “Typically, communication with such a bond makes it easier to work things out.”

And Fi faded back into the sword. Link looked back at it for a while, and then switched his gaze to meet Ghirahim’s. There was so much anger in his face. And then—

And then defeat.

His shoulders sagged and released a deep breath as if he had been holding it for ages. He started past Link and then his eyes wandered to the hills beyond. There was just sadness. Exhaustion. Depression.

The hero didn’t know what to do or what to not do, so he walked over to Ghirahim and just reached for his arm, stopping short when he flinched slightly.

“You know I won’t hurt you,” Link whispered. “Not intentionally, you know that right?”

Ghirahim didn’t acknowledge his question. 

The hero had to press on, “You know… I know I was angry at you for what happened with Zelda—”

“It was justified.”

“No,” he replied firmly. “ _ No _ , it was the demons not you.”

“Same difference, no?”

“No, not the same difference,” suddenly he felt exhausted. “I care about you. A lot.”

Ghirahim blinked and scowled, “So you’ve said before, Skychild.”

Link remained undeterred, “I don’t think you get the full magnitude of it.” That’s when Ghirahim started gritting his teeth. His eyes looked watery and Link wondered what he did wrong. There was a moment of silence as Link let that stew.

“You can’t.” Ghirahim said shortly. “You just can’t. It doesn’t make sense, why would you—”

“You’ve protected me,” Link began listing. “You helped me, you _ saved  _ me, not once, not twice, but many, many,  _ many _ , times. You watch over me. You listen to me. You make me happy when you keep fighting, when you keep going, when you cheer me on.” When Ghirahim turned and avoided his gaze, the hero kept pushing on, “You’re not terrible, Ghirahim. You deserve happiness just as much as everyone else—you deserve affection just as much as anyone else.”

“I don’t—”

“But you do,” he insisted. 

“You don’t understand, Link,” Ghirahim spun on him, stepped away. “I’m  _ dangerous _ . I’m a mess. Possessed by demons threatening to kill you at every moment. Being around you hurts because they always fight me to get to  _ you _ . There’s no reason to care. I could give up at any moment and just let them have at you. I am a demon, Link! Get that through your thick skull!”

“But you never done that,” Link insisted closing the gap again. “Ghirahim, damn it, you’re not terrible. You just proved my point!” He looked stricken, “The demons keep trying to get to me and you protect me! You’re a wonderful person—not demon. Get that through  _ your _ thick skull! The bonds prove that! If you weren’t, they wouldn’t be showing me your memories so intimately. I wouldn’t be able to hear your thoughts, feel your feelings—none of this would be happening!”

Link huffed, never quite used to shouting, always used to just his quiet. Ghirahim always did this to him. Agitated him. Impassioned him.  No one has done that before. 

Ghirahim stared down at their suddenly entangled hands and Link wasn’t quite sure when that happened but didn’t find it unpleasant.

“Let me have this,” Link murmured. “Let yourself have this.”

They remained silent for a long while. Ghirahim didn’t say anything. He shifted his gaze away—everywhere but at Link. The hero began to wonder if he took it too far, still trying to regain his breath. He just wanted them both to be happy, even if it wasn’t—

Link stopped that train of thought there.

“If we get out of this alive,” Ghirahim began softly. “ _ If _ we do… we’ll talk about this.” Link didn’t dare get his hopes up. “But I appreciate this Link, you’re the first…”

Ghirahim never did finish that sentence. Link would never know what he was trying to say because he suddenly collapsed to his knees lurching forward. Coughing up blood.

The demons were rejecting him and his feelings. They didn’t want him to confess what he was about to. It was the first time that had happened and it was such a bizarre thing that Link panicked, called out to Fi, but she was already there trying to ease Ghirahim.

Gone.

That was him. He just disappeared leaving only a trail of diamonds in his wake.

Link longed for him to not have to deal with that pain. He would fight for it.

The hero is not quite sure how much time passed before he saw Ghirahim again. When he did, he avoided the conversation of what happened before. Every time Link ried to bring it up, he would quickly switch the conversation or just avoid it completely. It was infuriating. Link wasn’t known for giving up, but he was about to then. 

If Ghirahim didn’t want his help, then he wouldn’t waste his time.

But it wasn’t in him to give up. He didn’t want to give up. He didn’t, he really, truly didn’t, but it was just so painful sometimes to be around him. He made it so damn difficult.

Why?

Link just wanted to help. Why didn’t he let him in?

Perhaps Link should have been more persistent.

_ “ _ **_Why do you keep fighting?”_ **

_ “I won’t ever give in.” _

**_“You’ll give in eventually.”_ **

_ “I’ll keep fighting till I die.” _

**_“You’ve grown tired, demon spawn.”_ **

_ “I am  _ **_not_ ** _ one of you!” _

**_“You will become one with us—you’ll recognize your true nature.”_ **

_ “I will  _ **_never_ ** _ be you! I’m not _ —”

**_“You are us!”_ **

_ “No _ —”

**_“Yes!”_ **

_ “No, no, no, I won’t! I can’t…” _

**_“You’ve grown tired.”_ **

_ “I can’t…” _

**_“Embrace it.”_ **

_ “Embrace…” _

**_“Accept it.”_ **

_ “I’m so  _ **_tired_ ** _.” _

**_“Yes. There we go…”_ **

_ “He...lp…” _

Link shot up. Breathing inconsistent, vision blurry, panic barely settling, Link clutched his chest tightly. 

“Ghirahim?” Link whispered noticing a figure in the corner of his vision.

“We’re reaching the end game, Skychild,” Ghirahim stared straight ahead, never making eye contact. “Demise’s power is growing stronger. The demons are.”

“Is that why I just had that—”

“ _ Yes _ ,” Ghirahim hissed. “I’m tired Link. I always am. Tired of fighting, of living, I’m tired.”

“Don’t say that,” the hero walked over to him sleepily. “Are you okay? What’s going on?”

Ghirahim shrugged, “We need to talk about our plan. We’ll never know when I’ll lose control. If Demise wins control over me, we need to talk about what we’re going to do.”

“Ghira,” Link slipped and winced at the nickname.

“Fi was the only one to ever call me that,” the man confessed softly. 

There was a pause before Link decided to speak, “Sorry, I won’t call you that again.”

“I don’t mind,” a shrug, “It’s refreshing and nice to hear…” Link smiled and nodded. “If the demons win, if Demise wins, you need to end it Link. If I can’t regain control, don’t hesitate to run that through that sword through me.”

Link blanched, his breath caught, “What?!”

“You heard me, Skychild,” Ghirahim sounded angry but his face only held exhaustion. “If worse comes to worse, don’t hesitate. We can’t take the risk of letting them win.”

“How many times do I have to tell you I won’t kill you!” Link shouted not caring what he may disturb in the night.

“It’s not about what you want!” Ghirahim fought back. “This is about the future. It doesn’t matter what  _ I _ want or what  _ you _ want! We can’t let them win. Period!” Taking a deep breath, he continued monotonously, “So if worse comes to worse, which it most likely will knowing my luck, you’ll kill me. You’ll kill Demise. That’ll be it. Easy.”

There was nothing easy about it.

Nothing.

Who was he fooling?

“Why can’t this be about what I want?” Link stood up, “Why can’t this be about what you want?! We’re fighting for the whole damn world why aren’t we allowed to want anything?”

“This isn’t about us, Link,” Ghirahim sighed. “It never was. It’s about an overall win. A few casualties on the side mean nothing.”

“How dare you say your life means nothing!” Link stepped forward with such intensity that Ghirahim flinched away. “How dare you make it as if I can’t care about you! As if, as if caring about you is a mistake!”

“It is!”

“You’re wrong!” 

Ghirahim winced and flinched away once more. Link suddenly felt a pang shoot through his chest. For a split second, Ghirahim looked afraid of him. For a split second, Link saw the boy he kept seeing in the memories. 

Fragile. Fractured. Terrified. 

Angry. At himself, at Demise, at Hylia.

Hatred.

So many emotions flickered through Ghirahim at that moment, and said man crumpled to his knees, arms wrapped around himself.

Afraid of Link.

Link knew he shouldn’t have snapped at him. Link knew, from his own experiences with the memories, that being yelled at was too similar to Demise. The hero wrapped his arms around Ghirahim and held him close even when he tried to pull away.

“I’m sorry,” he apologized ignoring the soft mumblings of Ghirahim pleading for him not to hurt him, begging him not to shout anymore. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry.”

Eventually Ghirahim fell silent, and Link could only see the boy who grew up too soon. The boy who never got to live the life he wanted and was thrusted into a mess like this.

They’re more alike than Ghirahim would ever admit. And both would never wish their fates on anyone, for different reasons and similar reasons all the same. 

“I’m sorry, Ghirahim,” Link said after a long moment of silence. “You’re safe, I promised you I wouldn’t hurt you. I meant that.”

“I may hurt you,” Ghirahim breathed burying his face in Link’s shoulder. The hero tried to keep the heat from rushing up his neck, but he was thankful that Ghirahim couldn’t see his face.

Link shrugged as best he could, “You won’t. It wouldn’t be you. It’d be the demons, I know that. We’ll make it out of this Ghirahim… I know we will…”

All he got in response was a noncommittal hum.

“I… I meant it when I said that you were important to me,” Link confessed. “You mean a lot to me. I want you happy.”

He received no response. Link wondered if it was because of the reaction he had before when he tried to respond to it. The demons may tear him up he chose to respond. Link wouldn’t force that on him. So he hugged Ghirahim tighter. Ghirahim let him.

——————————————————————--

Ghirahim’s condition has luckily improved significantly over the days. Faron chalks it up to Link visiting more often and talking to him. She did say that Ghirahim can most likely hear him. So Link went with it and kept telling him about his day and how progress was going with Zelda in building up the Surface. He keeps Ghirahim up to date with the state of affairs with Skyloft and Fi when she decides to stay with Zelda.

He tells Ghirahim how he’s doing and how he misses him. He was a constant companion. A constant in his life he loved. 

“He’s recovering well, hero,” Faron says breaking Link out of his reverie. “He’s on the way to full recovery, physically at least. The injury in his soul may hinder him still.”

“What will it be like?” Link asks with concern.

Faron releases a sigh, “It has different effects on many. The victim can suffer from constant dizziness, he may be unstable on his feet, there can be a loss of emotion, he could become mute, distant, and may experience severe memory gaps. Though, this is not an all inclusive list. Just the most common side effects.”

Link winces with every effect she lists. Ghirahim may not remember him, may not talk to him, may not be able to stand. It’ll be miserable for him. In the end though, it’ll give them both a reason to settle down, whether it be together or at least him and Fi together should the goddess allow them that reprieve, if only for a little while. 

Damn it.

He completely forgot about the war between the gods and demons. How involved is he supposed to be in that? How much does she expect him to do? Will Zelda join them? Now that Impa is gone—

That thought still hurts.

Now that she’s gone… they really don’t have that guidance. 

“I’ll be back a little later, Ghirahim,” Link whispers softly, a longing look in his eyes as he looks at the sword, fingers lingering longer on the blade than they probably should before walking away.

Zelda blinks rapidly at the sudden reminder of the war, “Goddess, I’ve been so focused on the surface I hadn’t even considered that.”

“What? Are we all supposed to just jump in and fight with the gods or something?” Groose’s eyes are wide with shock.

Fi shrugs, “I cannot be certain what she wants. I haven’t received any new orders from her since defeating Demise, but the fact that I am still here is reason enough to believe that there is a bigger purpose for me.”

“I thought you would disappear when the sword was placed back in the pedestal?” Link hope it doesn’t sound like he’s trying to get rid of her. He desires her companionship more than anything else right now. She has helped him through so many things.

And he wants her to reunite with her brother.

“That is so,” Fi nods. “However, I haven’t received a sign that it is time for me to resign to my fate.”

That sounds so dark it makes something churn in Link’s stomach. 

“I hope you’ll be given a chance to stay,” it slips out of Link’s lips before he realizes it, but before he can retract it or Fi can disregard it, Groose jumps in.

“Me too,” he looks up in earnest. “Losing Impa was already hard. I don’t really know you that well, but you’ve saved our asses a few times and helped this guy out. Speaking to you now… knowing your past and everything… You deserve a chance to live your life out.”

Zelda agrees, “Yes. Fi, we would love to have you here alongside your brother when he wakes up.”

Fi smiles—really smiles, “Thank you. That means a lot to me.”

“And well, uh, Fi, Link?” Groose hesitates and glances to Zelda for acknowledgement. She gives a small nod and he pushes on, “I want to apologize for how I treated Ghirahim a while ago. It wasn’t fair, I—”

“You didn’t know his story—our story,” Fi replies calmly. “It’s okay. I’m sure he can forgive you to.”

Groose and Zelda exchange glances and nod. They look to Link.

And Link allows himself to smile too. 

-0-0-0-

Link knew that Ghirahim would never speak of that night again. It was a given. It was one of his lowest points and he didn’t want that to be spoken of. Link respected that. He knew not to get attached to that moment where he thought  _ maybe _ Ghirahim felt something for him too. Maybe for a second everything that he has felt up till then was reciprocated. It was wishful thinking. Link knew by now that he shouldn’t associate that with Ghirahim so he let it go. 

It was harder than he thought, but he let it go. The next time he saw Ghirahim, they continued planning like nothing ever happened. 

Like Ghirahim hadn’t began telling Link more about his past openly. Like Ghirahim hadn’t told Link that night was the most comfortable and relaxed he had felt in a long time. Like Ghirahim hadn’t told Link that he wouldn’t mind staying like that forever, embraced by Link, falling asleep on Link. 

Like Ghirahim hadn’t placed that light kiss on his cheek when he thought Link was sleeping and telling him not to get too caught up in it.

Yes, so Link was just supposed to ignore everything that had happened. As if that wasn’t probably the best night Link had ever—especially since the journey had started.

It started trying to save Zelda, and it seemed like it was never going to end with every new kink. Falling in love with his “enemy” was never the plan. Being dragged into the war of the gods and demons was never the plan. Saving his “enemy” was never the plan.

But as he had learned, plans never went the way they were supposed to.

Which was why when Fi and Ghirahim were discussing plans, Link couldn’t help the feeling of dread that was building up in the pit of his stomach. This had to work out, or Link wouldn’t forgive himself.

No matter what the duo said. 

Link swallowed the lump in his throat, but it came back every five minutes as the plan just seemed to be further from realistic. Neither of the two seemed afraid. Link wished he had that confidence right now.

Maybe if Ghirahim’s life wasn’t on the line, he might’ve held more confidence. 

But just like everything that happened with Ghirahim and his demons, nothing worked out the way it was supposed to. 

So finding Ghirahim with a kidnapped Zelda wasn’t too surprising, but it was just as upsetting. It was upsetting for several reasons because Ghirahim swore he wouldn’t let it come to this. Ghirahim swore that this wouldn’t happen, yet—

It was happening then.

An unreal smirk was on his face—his sanity was  _ gone _ . The demons had won. They had moved too close to where the demons were going to summon Demise, that was their first mistake. As soon as he crossed that barrier, all hope of Ghirahim retaining control was lost. His blood lust skyrocketed and his hatred for Link blocked any other senses.

Demise suffocated the life out of Ghirahim and it was only the demons left to fill that vessel. 

Ghirahim choked, told Link to get away from him. He told Link that they went too far, that they slipped up trying to stop Demise that Demise got him first. He told Link to kill him when the time came.

Then, he disappeared and the next time the hero saw him, he had Zelda before him at his mercy to revive Demise.

He wanted Link dead. There was so much regret exhibited. Regret about going easy on Link, regret about letting Link live, regret about playing around so much. 

“You promised me!” Link yelled. “You promised me! You lied to me!”

Ghirahim laughed, a distorted thing that hurt Link’s ears, he was afraid they might bleed. 

“You should’ve known better than to believe, Skychild,” Ghirahim— _ not _ -Ghirahim hissed with a smirk too big for his face. 

Link didn’t know anything anymore.

And Link was just filled with pure rage because this was beginning to play out the way Ghirahim said it would nights before. This was what he wanted. To be taken down with Demise—it was the only way, he said. Link screamed at Ghirahim for being an idiot, but he knew Ghirahim wasn’t going to respond, the demons would, and they laughed at him for growing so close to him.

Link turned his anger and hatred towards trying to save Zelda. Fi constantly letting him know the odds, the time, but Link could here the anguish in her voice. This wasn’t supposed to happen.

Betrayal.

That’s what that feeling was. 

Ghirahim betrayed their trust. He was never going to go through their plan. He  _ lied _ . And they fell right into his trap. 

The battle was long and exhausting. Ghirahim didn’t hold back leaving cuts and bruises on his body. Ghirahim didn’t mind scarring his skin. He had a goal in mind. 

Revive Demise. Revive Demise.

Link hacked at him, tried to get the right angles. He would leave scars on Ghirahim as well. If that’s what it would take to end this, he would.

Save Zelda. Save Zelda.  Save Ghirahim.

Ghirahim was too far gone to be saved. 

And then Link was too late. He couldn’t save Zelda before Ghirahim summoned Demise. It was the horror of those seconds before Demise appeared and didn’t.

Where Ghirahim was back and Demons weren’t.

“Link…” he gasped in pain. “Link… this is the end game.”

“You lied to me…” Link cried out.

Fi appeared before them, desperation in her voice, “You promised—”

“You should’ve known,” Ghirahim wheezed. “If it meant ending all of this, I would take that risk… Please… you have to defeat him… I’m sorry I put you in this situation Link… Sister.” Ghirahim shook his head telling Link to let him finish, “If I make out of this,  _ if _ , then Link, Fi, let’s talk about that futu—” 

Before he could finish, his eyes widened and he sucked in a sharp breath as a sickening, twisted laugh escaped his lips, but Ghirahim looked like he was in so much pain, clutching at his chest, digging his fingers into the ground so aggressively they started to bleed. Link’s heart contorted as Demise appeared.

This was it.

Ghirahim screamed in agony, and it wasn’t him left, but the sword that he was destined to be.

Demise leered at Fi and Link, “ **_As it should be. How fitting_ ** .”

The hero lost it. 

—————————————————————————————-

“You said we’d talk about that future, Ghira,” Link whispers fondly as his fingers gently run over the sword. “So let’s talk about it, okay?” 

The cracks are practically unnoticeable now. Faron says that he should wake up soon. He’ll be a bit disoriented when he first wakes up, but he’ll at least be awake. The eagerness hasn’t escaped Link yet. He wants to see him again. He wants to speak to him, hold him, laugh with him. He wants this to be okay for once. 

Call him selfish, but he just wants to be happy for once, really happy.

“Master—”

“Just call me Link, Fi,” he insists. “I never did like that.”

Fi hesitates, then, “Link, then.”

“Yeah?” Link grins.

“Zelda is looking for you. Should I tell her you’re on your visit?”

“No, no,” Link waves her off. “I was just about to head back there.”

Fi nods and follows alongside Link talking casually about Ghirahim’s condition, the progress on the surface and what life has been like back at Skyloft. 

“Have they asked about us?” Link asks. 

Fi shrugs, “You should go back up. I’m sure they would love to see you. I know you wish to be near my brother at all times, but you deserve a breather.”

Link fiddles with his fingers, “I just want to be there when he wakes up. I know he’s spent some time on the surface, but if he disoriented and suffers from anything else… I don’t want him to be alone.” 

Fi nods, “Me too.”

“Can you forgive him?” Link asks after a beat of silence when they’ve walked through Zelda’s door back at Skyloft. 

“For which thing? Lying to us? Sacrificing himself?” Fi questions bitterly.

Link bites his lip, “All those things.”

“I will because he will live,” Fi replies shortly. “But I will be upset with him nonetheless—a better warning would have been nice. It was unfair what he did...”

Link nods and walks in to the living room with Zelda and Groose. The hero feels relaxed with them. They drink tea, talk about the day by day. What their plans are for the future of the Surface. The trio plan the schedules and breaks and when they’re going back to Skyloft. Zelda confesses that she hasn’t really visited in a long time time and is due for a visit and Groose agrees. 

It’s then that Link wonders what their relationship is. They never talk about it—the relationships. They know it’s a sensitive topic. It’s too heavy of a conversation right now. 

But Link really wants to know. 

——————————————————-

_ “Young hero.” _

_ His eyes shoot open. It takes a moment for his eyes to adjust to the brightness around him. He’s lying down. Above him are clouds floating lazily in the sky. A beautiful, unnatural blue for the sky, a sun that burns too brightly, he feels as if his eyes may melt. _

_ It takes him a little longer to realize that it’s his body. He’s not looking through the eyes of a beaten and abused child. These are his own. These are his hands, his hair, his body. _

_ But this is not his bed or his home _ — _ no, he is lying on the ground of a place that reminds him of Skyloft if it were to be the home of a grand palace. _

_ Where is he? _

_ “I know that this is startling,” the voice begins. It sounds motherly and all knowing. It sounds almost… familiar. His blue eyes dart around looking for the source of the voice. _

_ “The other child will awaken soon.” _

_ Again, he looks around for the source. He looks around for the other child. There is a heap on the ground on the other side, but Link can’t make out any features.  _

_ “You have defeated Demise,” she begins again. “For that, I thank you. That is one more step to ending this war.” _

_ War? War, war, war… _

_ What war? _

_ His eyes widen, “The war between the gods and demons?” _

_ “Yes,” she confirms. “We have not won yet. We have the upper hand again, and I’m still recovering from the attack that the demons struck with, but we will win. I owe you an apology for the sacrifices you have made.” There’s a pause and shuffling on the other side where Link saw the body from before, “And the sacrifices you have made.” _

_ Their eyes meet and widen at the same time. _

_ “Ghirahim?” _

_ “Link?” _

_ “Children, I am glad to be able to speak to you both.” _

_ Ghirahim, stumbles and stands to close the distance between Link. Link watches as his skin turns from grey to a pale natural color, his brows fill in once more, the makeup fading, the scars showing on his pale skin. His hair remains the same pale white. _

_ Link meets him halfway and hugs him tightly and keeps chanting his name as if his life depends on it. _

_ “Oh goddess, I’m so glad I get to see you again,” Ghirahim whispers. “I’m so glad you’re okay. I don’t… I don’t remember much of the fight with Demise. I just remember… pain.” _

_ The hero only squeezes him tighter, “Please tell me this isn’t a dream. Please tell me I’ll remember this when I wake up and you’ll be right there beside me.” _

_ Hylia chooses that moment to speak, appearing before them with a small, sad smile, “I cannot guarantee anything. Hero, you will. Ghirahim, young child… You may not. Your soul is still recovering, the effects are _ —”

_ “Yes, I know,” Ghirahim mutters softly, but he never takes his eyes off of Link. They look at him with adoration, and Link finds himself mesmerized. “I’m just glad I get to see you again, even if I won’t remember this.” _

_ Link cups his face. Ghirahim won’t remember this. It will be the only way that he may ever be this close to Ghirahim.  _

_ “Children,” Hylia continues with that small smile. “I hate this, but your battles are not over.” _

_ Ghirahim pulls away first, though it’s reluctant, “I’m tired of fighting the battles of the gods.” And it’s stated with so much exhaustion, Link’s heart aches.  _

_ “I know, child,” Hylia looks remorseful. “But to ensure the peace of all future generations, it must be done.” _

_ Link grips Ghirahim’s hand earning him a confused and weary face. Link nods and gives his hand a light squeeze before speaking to the goddess, “I understand… if after this battle you will no longer call upon us, then fine, so be it.” _

_ “Link!” Ghirahim hisses. “You can’t _ — _ ” _

_ “For our future, Ghirahim,” Link mutters staring up at him.  _

_ Ghirahim stares at him for a long time, a mixture of hurt, confusion, and fatigue. Finally, he acquiesces, “Okay… okay Link. If you want, then I’ll… I’ll back you up.” _

_ “No, you don’t have to, Ghira,” Link mutters. “You deserve to rest.” _

_ “You do too,” Ghirahim nods. “I’m with you Link.” _

_ Link didn’t think he could fall any deeper for the man. Seeing him like this, free from his burdens of a curse long forgotten, makes Link want nothing more than to just keep him in this realm.  _

_ “What about Fi?” Ghirahim asks darting his eyes away. “What will you have her do?” _

_ “Fi shall travel with the hero,” she replies calmly. “After this is done, her fate has yet to be decided.” _

_ Ghirahim sighs and holds Link’s hand tighter, “I see.” _

_ Link doesn’t want this to end. He wants this to go on forever. They’re at peace. They’re not burdened. Ghirahim is by his side. _

_ “One day, maybe you’ll have this Link,” Ghirahim isn’t looking at Link.  _

_ “And you too,” Link says it in earnest. “Soon.” _

_ Ghirahim gives him a small smile, and it looks so bright on his face. He begins saying something, Link can tell because he can see his lips move, but no sound is coming out. _

Link jolts awake, breathing heavily. Fi is by his side seemingly concerned.

“Fi?” he hopes the disappointment isn’t prominent in his voice. It’s not Ghirahim.

“Are you all right?”

No, but he won’t tell her that.

“Faron has told me that Ghirahim is showing signs of waking up.”

His disappointment fades. He throws off the covers and yells to Zelda about where he’s going, and Zelda ends up following him. When they reach the lake, she keeps a fair distance. Link looks at the body pulling themselves out of the water, slowly with a grunt of pain. The white hair is still there, yet just like in that dream, his skin has regained some of its old color.

Link walks over and tries to help. 

“Don’t touch me,” he bites out, but it comes out weak and dry.

Link backs up in shock, tripping over his own feet, “Ghirahim?”

He blinks several times, eyes not focusing. He grunts again and tries to keep dragging himself out, but he looks so tired.

“Ghirahim, can I help you?”

His only response is a non-committal hum. Link helps him regardless of his original reaction. Ghirahim stares at Link without any recognition. He looks tired. He’s drenched and shivering and all the muscles in his body seem to have stopped working as Link gently removes him from the water. Ghirahim whimpers softly as Link holds him close. 

“I’m not going to hurt you, Ghirahim,” Link whispers as he brushes the wet locks from his face. “I promise you, I won’t.”

“Promise?” Ghirahim mutters sleepily. 

“Yes,” Link replies soothingly, but he worries that Ghirahim doesn’t recognize him. “I promise Ghira…”

Ghirahim sighs softly and Link realizes then that he’s asleep.

Maybe things will be okay. 

**Author's Note:**

> This started as a stream of thoughts and grew into something big. 
> 
> Please leave comments and kudos!  
> I'm debating if I should write a sequel going into the war between the gods and demons.


End file.
